Ukrainian Official Resigns Amid Shakeup

The deputy head of Ukraine’s presidential office resigned Tuesday amid what President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said would be some personnel changes in his government.  Kyrylo Tymoshenko did not give a reason for his resignation in a post he made on Telegram. He thanked Zelenskyy “for the trust and the opportunity to do good deeds every day and every minute.”  A decree accepting the resignation was posted on the Ukrainian presidential website.  “There are already personnel decisions — some today, some tomorrow — regarding officials at various levels in ministries and other central government structures, as well as in the regions and in law enforcement,” Zelenskyy said in his evening address Monday.?  His comments come a day after anti-corruption police said they had detained the deputy infrastructure minister over allegations he received a $400,000 bribe over the import of generators last September.?  European tanks??  NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg is meeting with German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius in Berlin on Tuesday as Germany faces continued pressure to approve exports of its Leopard 2 tanks to help Ukrainian forces combat Russia’s invasion.  A spokesman for German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Monday that Germany “does not rule out” the tanks’ transfer, but that nothing had been decided.  Poland’s prime minister said Monday his country is building a coalition of nations ready to send the German-made tanks to Ukraine even if Germany does not give formal permission.  Ukraine has long sought heavy tanks to combat Russian forces using more modern tanks than those in Ukraine’s arsenal.  At the U.S. State Department, Ned Price fielded questions from reporters asking if the United States would support other countries supplying Leopards without Germany’s approval.  While Price did not directly answer the questions, he said, “We may be hearing more from our German allies in the coming hours, in the coming days.”  Price also highlighted other military aid that Germany has sent to Ukrainian forces, saying, “Germany has stepped up in a big way.”  U.S. defense officials have resisted sending their own Abrams M1 tanks to Ukraine, citing their complex training and maintenance needs.  Price said Monday Ukraine does have tanks in service, and that the United States has helped Ukrainian forces add more to their fleet.  “We have worked with them to obtain former Soviet-made and Russian-made tanks that they’re already trained on, they know how to use, they can put to use right away, they can repair them, they can keep them operational, and most importantly, they can be effective with them,” Price said. ???  Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters. 

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