here is our correspondent nick connolly near the front line, in kramatorsk. ck: i think this is really important. i was on the fines a couple of hours ago before this news came in at the first question from everyone when we said we were from german broadcasting was "where are the tanks?" it was a joke, but it was met with a lot of concern. these spring events, last chances for ukraine to push back before the pressure on ukraine month to get back to negotiations, that depends on the tax. to move forward, they need tanks. this is a massive development. phil: that was nick connolly in kramatorsk. mont montgomery is a retired u.s. navy rear admiral and serves at the foundation for defense of democracies. i asked him about the difference 18 leopard 2's would make. guest: first, thank you for having me. as your reporter alluded to, it will make a significant difference. these tanks will be part of an overall grouping of 88 to 100 tanks that come from germany and poland and sweden and finland, norway, spain, portugal and canada, a lot of deliveries of leopard 2 which

nick connolly in kyiv, thank you.n brussels, nato secretary-general jens stoltenberg today called for more ambitious spending targets to ensure continued support for ukraine. stoltenberg was present in the alliance's annual report which details key decisions on the war ukraine -- war in ukraine. he described russia as the biggest threat to security, along with the threat of terrorism. >> president putin wants a different europe. he sees democracy and freedom as offense and wants to control his neighbors. so even if the war in ukraine ended tomorrow, the security environment has changed for the long-term. putin's invasion last year was a shock, but it was not a surprise. it was the culmination of a countdown of aggressive action. and in response, since russia's illegal annexation of crimea in 2014, nato has implemented the largest enforcement collected offense in a generation. brent: that was the head of nato speaking earlier today. let's take a look now at other stories making headlines around the world. russian autho

i spoke earlier with t w, corresponded nick connolly, and kevin asked him about the reactions in ukraine to the visit. well, there has been a big reaction in social media. people questioning some people in question. if this actually was mario pulled up, which is all pretty grainy and wobbly, and wasn't professionally filmed. others contrasting it with the present, the landscape, visits to the front lines to the troops there. i think there's been a lot of kristen even inside russia, about putins reluctance to get anywhere closer to the action closer to danger. so i think this was an attempt on the part of leg putin to show that he is not scared that he is willing to go to the front lines will be fairly far away from the front lines as my uncle now is. but they're certainly a sign that this is a very emotional topic. this is something that people weren't expecting. and that has kind of caught you kind of public opinion of god. and i'd like to just sort of why mariel, paul, because there are, as you know, symbolic battles in history, places like stalingrad waterloo, maybe back move. now, wh

gerhard: our dw's nick connolly is in kyiv and gave us this update on the attack in zaporizhzhia. ck: there are still many people unaccounted for, and there is an expectation that the casualty figures might still rise. we know that of the people who were recovered alive from the ruins, there was a pregnant woman and children believed to be among the survivors. in terms of how this happened, for now we have information from the ukrainian authorities, they say that this was a russian s300 missile. that's originally an anti-aircraft, air defense rocket, but given that russia is running out of ammunition they are repurposing those to attack ukrainian targets. that is a weapon that is very difficult to defend against. it's a ballistic rocket, it travels much faster than the normal cruise missiles and travels in a way that makes it pretty much impossible to intercept. so, especially for cities like zaporizhzhia that are very big, have big area, it is difficult to see how they are going to avoid this kind of danger in the future. gerhard: this is not the first time that zaporizhzhia and t

nick connolly has met with people who are keeping ukraine's metals industry going in the face of theirstrikes. reporter: it is a sound that means one thing -- time to head for safety underground. no matter how any times you've heard it, and never stops being unnerving. a year on, reduction at this metal plant continues regardless. thanks to this improvised set up, the people down here can keep the machines running up above. their boss shows us his emergency supplies if needed, they can survive on these provisions for days or even weeks. so far this plant has not been hit, with russian troops still less than 100 kilometers away, the risks are real. >> this is war. no one can possibly know what will happen tomorrow. we cannot afford not to be prepared. i pray we will never need any of this. reporter: other ukrainian companies have been less fortunate. two russian missiles a few days apart hit the site, killing two people. at a different time, the figure would have been higher. >> a rocket can come anytime and anyplace, any house, any facility. my first time here, i did not want to come

that was our correspondingly connolly in keith. nick, thanks a lot. we'll move on now. german chancellor, all laughed schultz is in tokyo for a trip aimed at strengthening economic ties with japan. salts has been meeting with japanese prime minister fin the or kisha the pair have been discussing why is to strengthen economic security and reduce dependence on chinese raw materials? i've also talked about the war in ukraine. t w's chief political correspondent, nina hasa is travelling with chancel. all our shots. she told us more about his trip to japan. economic security is the headline for these very 1st german japanese intergovernmental consultations taking place in tokyo, where all of shots the german chancellor has brought 6 of his most important ministers to discuss bilateral issues. here with ministers who share some of the responsibilities. now, japan is germany 2nd largest trading partner in asia after china, and in light of russia's war of aggression against ukraine. both countries have recognized the need to reduce dependencies on big players

new connolly and he tonight, nick, thank you. in brussels and nato secretary general un stock bag today called for more ambitious spending targets to ensure continued support for ukraine. stockton beg was presenting the alliances, annual reports which details key decisions on the war in ukraine. he described russia as europe's biggest, ongoing threat to security, alongside the threat of terrorism. present it in wants different europe. he sees democracy and freedom as effects. and he seeks to control its neighbors. so even if the war in ukraine ended to morrow, the security environment has changed for the long term. put then sir, innovation last year was a shock. but it was not a surprise. it was the combination of the content of aggressive action on in response since russia's illegal annexation crimea in 2014, nate to has implemented largest to enforcement or collect the defense in the generation. that was the head of nate against veg speaking earlier today. let's take a look now, some of the other stories that are making headlin