Drones attacked an oil refinery in the Kaluga region, and a member of the "self-defense" group was reported dead in the Belgorod region.
The Russian Defense Ministry accused Ukraine of attacking the Belgorod and Kaluga regions with drones, Grads, and Vampire MLRS. There was a drone strike on an oil refinery there. This was reported by the Russian Defense Ministry.
"Last night, an attempt by the Kyiv regime to carry out a terrorist attack on targets in the Russian Federation using aircraft-type UAVs and BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launchers was prevented," the statement says.
According to the sources of Ukrainian Pravda, RBC-Ukraine, and NV, the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry was behind the attack of Ukrainian drones on the petrochemical plant Pervyi Zavod in the Kaluga region.
In addition, the Russian Ministry of Defense claims that Russian air defense allegedly intercepted and destroyed 5 drones and 2 rockets over the territories of Belgorod and Kaluga regions.
Later, Russia again accused Ukraine of attacking the Belgorod region. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, RM-70 Vampire multiple launch rocket systems were allegedly used in the region.
Subsequently, the governor of the Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, said that 2 people were injured in the city, and that there was damage to high-rise buildings, cars, and shopping centers. Later, Gladkov reported a new shelling that killed a "member of the territorial self-defense". The shelling also allegedly destroyed houses, garages and cars.
German Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger said that the company plans to build at least four weapons plants in Ukraine.
The construction of factories for the production of rounds, military equipment, gunpowder and anti-aircraft weapons is under discussion.
"Ukraine is now an important partner for us, and we see a potential of two to three billion euros (in sales - ed.) per year," Papperger said.
According to Papperger, in the medium term, Rheinmetall plans to produce a total of 1.1 million 155 mm shells at all its facilities to strengthen its position as a global leader in this industry.
The projectile plant in Ukraine will not be built from scratch, the businessman told DW.
"We are using the existing infrastructure so that we don't spend a lot of time on building. Ukraine doesn't have time, they are at war, they need to move quickly," Papperger said.
According to him, the first shells could roll off the assembly line in Ukraine in 15 months.
Proceeds from frozen Russian assets will be used to purchase weapons for Ukraine. This was stated by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz during a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, RAD reports.
"From now on, we will buy more weapons for Ukraine around the world. We will also expand the production of military equipment through cooperation with partners in Ukraine," Scholz said.
Macron noted that France, Poland, and Germany will not be sending army contingents to Ukraine at this time. Instead, Ukraine will receive increased military and financial assistance. Donald Tusk emphasized that this assistance “should be immediate.”
The European Commission has allocated €500 million for the production of ammunition, which will allow the European defense industry to increase production capacity to 2 million shells per year by the end of 2025.
Under the Ammunition Support Act (ASAP), Europe is expected to reach an annual production of 2 million shells.
"The Commission has completed the assessment under the ASAP Regulation in record time and selected 31 projects to help European industry increase ammunition production and readiness," the statement says.
These projects cover five sectors: gunpowder, explosives, projectiles, missiles, and test and recovery certification. They will be funded by the EU and Norway from their own budgets.
The European Commission expects that grant agreements with the selected applicants will be signed in May this year.
Portugal allocates €100 million for the purchase of shells for Ukraine. The country's government has approved a contribution to the support program for Ukraine proposed by the Czech Republic.
The Czechs have found 800,000 pieces of artillery ammunition (half a million NATO caliber shells and 300,000 Soviet caliber shells). The ammunition outside the EU needs to be paid for, and the Czech Republic has announced a fundraiser. More than ten countries have already joined it, including France, Germany, Canada, Belgium and others.
Meanwhile, Bulgaria has provided Ukraine with 100 armored personnel carriers, which it had promised to provide last year. Bulgarian Defense Minister Todor Tagarev announced that his country had completed the shipment of all armored personnel carriers to Ukraine. On March 7, the first 30 railcars with APCs left for Ukraine, and the last echelon, according to the minister, has already left Bulgaria.
"The total cost of the project exceeded 170 thousand leva (86,920 euros)," the head of the Bulgarian Defense Ministry said.
According to him, 247 servicemen and civilians from the Logistics Support Command, the Army and the Military Police Service of Bulgaria participated in the transportation of the APC. The process also involved 26 units of special equipment.