Ukraine Invasion: Poland donate tanks as Pentagon warn fighting in eastern Ukraine could linger

Poland has reportedly provided tanks to Ukraine to bolster its defense against invading Russian forces.

A Polish TV station interviewed a senior government official in charge of security policy who said Warsaw has supplied Ukraine with T-72 tanks developed by the former Soviet Union.

The official did not specify how many tanks Poland has provided but indicated that it would continue supplying them.

A local media outlet has reported that the transfer could involve more than 200 of the same type.

Poland is wary of Russia for historical reasons and has sided with Ukraine in the conflict. Warsaw has previously said it would provide fighter jets to Ukraine.

Meanwhile, a senior Pentagon official says that fighting in eastern Ukraine may drag on for some time as both Russian and Ukrainian forces are familiar with the terrain and using long-range fire.

The official said on Friday that Russia is trying to press the Ukrainians from the north, south, and east, and troops who had been deployed in the southeastern city of Mariupol are moving north.

The US Defense Department official also said Russian troops are moving south from Izyum in the Kharkiv region but facing fierce resistance from Ukrainians.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video released on Friday that the situation in the Kharkiv region is tough. But he said the Ukrainian military and intelligence are having important tactical success.
He also said that constant Russian strikes at infrastructure and residential areas in the Donbas region show that Russia wants to make the area uninhabitable.

He went on to say that the Ukrainian defense is literally “a struggle for life.”

In an interview with Polish media, the president said he cannot trust Russia because it has repeatedly broken promises.

He also said one person decides everything in Russia, and talking to that person and reaching an agreement is the only way for promises to be fulfilled.

He added that there is a big risk that peace talks with Moscow will end.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has claimed that ceasefire talks are stalled because Ukraine’s position is incoherent.

Speaking to the Middle Eastern satellite TV station Al Arabiya, Lavrov accused the Ukrainian side of playing games.

The minister argued that Ukraine has changed its demand over a proposed security framework agreed upon in March.

The proposal would ensure Ukraine has security without joining NATO.