WEDNESDAY 1/25/23

Tanks to Ukraine – Germany will now deliver a supply of its Leopard 2 tanks (above) to Ukraine to support its effort to push back Russian forces. The NATO country initially had resisted sending its own tanks in favor of Poland delivering its German-made Leopard 2s, but an apparent reversal by the Biden administration on sending American-made M1 Abrams tanks prompted Germany’s decision, The Recount says.

Strategy: The Leopard 2 tanks are considered more crucial to Ukraine’s defense against Russia in that they’re much easier to train on and better-suited for Ukrainian terrain. 

Meanwhile, Zelenskyy Tackles Corruption: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has removed “nearly a dozen” top officials to contain a number of corruption scandals as the West continues to send military and humanitarian aid. The Wall Street Journal notes that corruption under Zelenskyy’s administration is “small compared with the previous Ukrainian governments – some accused of stealing billions of dollars in public funds…” 

U.S. Aid Last Year: The White House approved about $48 billion in aid to Ukraine in 2022, the Council on Foreign Relations says https://www.cfr.org/article/how-much-aid-has-us-sent-ukraine-here-are-six-charts

Republican Resistance: House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) has said his caucus is not interested in writing a “blank check” to Ukraine, which seems as much a nod to sympathy among MAGA-right Republicans for Russian President Vladimir Putin as it is more traditional GOP fiscal conservatism.

--Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa