Kyiv's top diplomatic envoy in Berlin says his country needs German-made Leopard 2 tanks to fight Russia as soon as possible. But an arms maker said it could take until 2024 for its tanks are ready for export.

The strike destroyed an apartment building in the eastern city of Dnipro. Meanwhile, three people were killed in an ammunition explosion in a Russian region bordering Ukraine.

France's former president François Hollande granted an interview to FRANCE 24 and RFI on Wednesday, some 10 years after launching Operation Serval, which ousted armed rebels and Islamist militants from northern Mali. Hollande defended the record of French military operations in the Sahel region and expressed regret at the arrival of mercenaries from the Russian paramilitary Wagner Group.

The new package will replenish ammunition and boost Ukraine's stock of combat vehicles, but US, and therefore possibly German, tanks are off the table.

US Defense Secretary Austin has said Germany would continue to exercise leadership, despite Berlin not yet approving its Leopard 2 tanks for delivery to Ukraine.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Berlin would not stand in the way if Poland decides to send Leopard tanks to Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron did not rule out sending heavy tanks to Ukraine.

Russia's repeated assaults on Ukraine's energy grid has forced many cities to roll out power cuts to save energy. In the capital Kyiv, city authorities have restricted public lighting at night - with serious consequences for people out on the streets.

The British military says the war is in a stalemate in Ukraine's northeast, as well as Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia. Zelenskyy attended a funeral for the interior minister killed in a helicopter crash. DW has the latest.

Western allies meeting in Ramstein failed to back the delivery of powerful battle tanks to help Kyiv fend off Russian forces. One German lawmaker said the lack of a decision was a major foreign policy failure by Berlin.

Russia's private military company, the Wagner Group, is also facing additional sanctions with the US saying it poses a "transcontinental threat."

Pressure is growing on Germany to send Leopard 2 battle tanks to Ukraine. Chancellor Scholz doesn't want to commit just yet, partly because he's playing to his party, the Social Democrats. An analysis by Sabine Kinkartz.

Ukraine's deputy defense minister, responsible for supplies to troops, has resigned citing "media accusations" of corruption. Other government figures have also quit or been fired.