Ninth meeting in Ramstein format, shelling of Kherson and Donetsk Oblasts: today's highlights

Conducting an offensive by Ukraine

U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said that the Ukrainian Defense Forces may launch an offensive in the spring. That is why Ukraine's international partners are currently working hard to transfer the necessary weapons to the military. He said this at a briefing on February 14 following the 9th meeting in the Ramstein format.

“We expect them [the Ukrainian Defense Forces] to launch an offensive in the spring. And because of this, all of us, the partners in the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, are working hard to ensure that they have the capabilities to be effective... We believe that they will have a window of opportunity to take the initiative and then continue to create the right conditions on the battlefield,” Austin said.

Occupiers shelled a medical facility and an ambulance station in Kherson Oblast

On February 14, the Russian occupation forces shelled two medical institutions in Kherson Oblast. This was reported by the Kherson Regional State Administration.

In the morning, Russian troops shelled a medical facility in Kherson. At that time, doctors were receiving patients, so it was quite crowded, the Regional Military Administration notes. Casualties were avoided only because people immediately ran out into the corridor when they heard loud explosions.

Later, the Russian army hit an ambulance station in Beryslav. The attack destroyed the station's building and damaged the medics' cars. An ambulance driver was slightly injured: the man was hit by glass shards, but his life and health are not in danger.

Russians fire missiles at Kostiantynivka and Kramatorsk

The occupiers launched two missile attacks on Kostiantynivka and Kramatorsk in Donetsk Oblast. Preliminary, one person was wounded in Kostiantynivka, and the Palace of Culture, where humanitarian aid was distributed, was damaged. This was reported by the head of the Donetsk regional military administration.

Kyrylenko emphasized that the occupants had attacked civilian facilities. A humanitarian aid distribution center was operating in the Palace of Culture in Kostiantynivka. And in Kramatorsk, the Russians hit the premises of a medical facility.

Bodies of the family from Zaporizhzhia were found under rubble in Turkey

In the city of Antakya in southern Turkey, the bodies of a family from Zaporizhzhia, 46-year-old Yuliia Petrova, and her two sons, aged 10 and 5, were found under the rubble of a house destroyed by an earthquake. This was reported by Ukrinform and Suspilne.

Serhii Petrov, Yuliia’s father, said that the bodies of his relatives were found in the evening, on February 13. According to him, Yuliia, Zakhar, and Matvii will be buried in Zaporizhzhia. Currently, the Ukrainian embassy is dealing with the transportation of the bodies.

The family had been in Turkey since April 2022. Serhii last spoke to his family on the evening of February 5, and the next morning the earthquake hit.

The ninth meeting of Ukraine's partners in the Ramstein format took place in Brussels

On February 14, the ninth meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (Ramstein format) took place in Brussels, where international partners discussed military support for the Ukrainian Defense Forces.

At around noon Kyiv time, Ukraine's Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov announced the start of the meeting. Before that, Reznikov held bilateral meetings with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin III and Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren.

In his opening remarks, Lloyd Austin noted that together, Ukraine's partners have already allocated almost $50 billion to help Ukraine since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion.

The United States, Germany, and the Netherlands are cooperating to provide Ukraine with Patriot air defense systems. France and Italy are cooperating to provide SAMP/T air defense systems.

A consortium of countries, including Germany, Poland, Canada, Portugal, Spain, Norway, Denmark, and the Netherlands, is working together to provide Ukraine with Leopard battle tanks. The United States, the Czech Republic, and the Netherlands are jointly providing more than 90 T-72 tanks (in addition to the T-72 tanks provided by Poland). The United Kingdom has provided Challenger battle tanks and worked with several countries to get more ammunition to Ukraine's defenders.