More German tanks for Ukraine as EU leaders meet in Kyiv
European Council President Charles Michel and EU President Ursula von der Leyen are in Kyiv for the meeting
It is the first EU-Ukraine summit since the start of the Russian invasion nearly a year ago and the first since Ukraine gained EU candidacy status
As we reported a short time ago, Germany has authorised the delivery of Leopard 1 tanks to Ukraine. The announcement came from a government spokesperson during a press conference.
The move follows a headline-grabbing announcement late last month that 14 of the country's newer Leopard 2 tanks would be sent Kyiv's way - and other countries would also be authorised to send their own Leopard 2s as well.
As many as 88 of the older Leopard 1s are to be sent, according to a report earlier today by Süddeutsche Zeitung. But, the newspaper writes that these vehicles are in need of repair. The Leopard 1 entered service in the 1960s.
Officials in Berlin have declined to confirm the number due to be sent.
EU providing LED bulbs to help efficiency - Von der Leyen
EU head Ursula von der Leyen has tweeted about a scheme to help reduce Ukraine's energy consumption as its war effort against Russia continues.
She's in Kyiv to take part in the EU-Ukraine summit which will discuss the country's bid to gain EU membership.
President Volodymyr Zelensky wants negotiations on joining the EU to start "this year" - although there appear to be a number of hurdles in the way of it fully signing up to the bloc.
Ukraine was granted official EU candidate status last June, following Russia's full-scale invasion in February.
But that doesn't bring any guarantee of a swift join-up, as Albania and North Macedonia will tell you. Both countries have been stuck in this proverbial waiting-room for years.
Last year, French President Emmanuel Macron said it could take "decades" for Kyiv to achieve full membership.
The EU wants Ukraine to crack down on corruption, believing this to be an entrenched issue. President Zelensky recently launched an anti-corruption drive.
As for Russia - it shrugged off Ukraine's assumption of candidate status last year, but it has long opposed any effort by Ukraine to foster closer ties with the West. President Putin once described Russians and Ukrainians as "one people, a single whole".
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