Victorious news of 378th day of war: Ukraine to receive two dozen Leopards by late March, large-scale fire in occupied Enerhodar

The EU will provide EUR 1 billion to compensate for military aid to Ukraine

EU High Representative Josep Borrell says that defense ministers have agreed to provide EUR 1 billion in immediate military aid to Ukraine.

In addition, during a press conference in Stockholm following an informal meeting of EU defense ministers, Borrell announced that more than 11,000 Ukrainian soldiers were being trained.

“By the end of this month, our Military Assistance Mission (EUMAM-Ukraine) will have trained more than 11,000 Ukrainian soldiers. All member states have expressed their satisfaction with the results achieved by this training mission and pledged to do more,” Borrell said.

Two dozen Leopards to be delivered to Ukraine in March

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said that by the end of March Ukraine would receive 18 Leopard 2A6 tanks from Germany and three from Portugal.

“I can tell you that I have just learned that 18 German Leopard 2A6 tanks and three Portuguese tanks may arrive in Ukraine this month,” Pistorius said on the sidelines of a meeting of EU defense ministers in Stockholm.

SBU Special Forces shoot down enemy Solntsepyok

The soldiers of the SBU Special Operations Center A burned down a Russian Solntsepyok heavy flamethrower system right at the moment of its launch. They managed to do this with the help of an FPV drone. The video of the hit was released by the Ukrainian Armed Forces' General Staff. 

The General Staff also clarified that over the past day, the Ukrainian Defense Forces' aviation launched 11 strikes on the Russian troops' military positions and one strike on the position of the enemy's anti-aircraft missile system.

Missile and artillery units hit the invading forces' command post during the day.

National Guard shot down Su-25 attack aircraft near Bakhmut

Defenders from Ukraine's National Guard shot down a Russian Su-25 with a Piorun MANPADS. It happened near Bakhmut in the Donetsk region from a distance of up to four kilometers.

“The enemy attack aircraft was covering the infantry advancing on the defenders' line from the air. The man-portable air defense system opened fire and shot down the Russian armored attack aircraft. We saw through the thermal imager that the aircraft was hit and went down, and the fate of the pilot is unknown,” the Partisan division commander said. 

Large-scale fire in occupied Enerhodar

Melitopol Mayor Ivan Fedorov reported a fire in the occupied town of Enerhodar. Local public media reported that the Russian Guard and the military were involved in extinguishing the fire. It is reported that the fire on the waterfront has spread to an area of almost 4 hectares. The occupying forces believe that the fire was caused by Ukrainian drones with incendiary ammunition.

The decline of the Ukrainian economy has slowed down

In February 2023, Ukraine's GDP fell by 26% year-on-year. In January, GDP fell by 32%, so the situation has improved slightly.

“In general, the economic front is holding - the economy continues to function, adapt, and recover,” Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko commented. 

In February, the situation in the industrial sector improved slightly compared to January of this year due to a decrease in the electricity shortage. Last month, there were fewer missile attacks on electricity facilities than in January, and their negative impact was offset by greater adaptability of producers.