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       Germany has confirmed it will provide Ukraine with much sought-after Leopard 2 heavy battle tanks. Moscow blasted the move as a "blatant provocation".

       In a significant boost to Kyiv's war effort, Berlin agreed to the delivery of Leopard 2 battle tanks to Ukraine on Tuesday, reversing its policy of hesitance. This was confirmed by the Chancellery in the afternoon.

       Meanwhile, Washington was expected to announce as soon as Wednesday that it will send M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine, a source told Reuters.

       Giving Ukraine battle tanks has been a contentious issue in recent weeks.

       Some of Kyiv's allies, particularly in eastern Europe, have argued it is essential at a time when Russia is gaining ground on the battlefield, while others, notably the US and Germany, have worried about escalating hostilities.

       "Discussions must be concluded with decisions" Volodymyr Zelenskyy

       Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pressed the West to donate their most modern battle tanks on Tuesday evening, saying that "discussions must be concluded with decisions".

       Moscow has warned supplying Kyiv with offensive weaponry will escalate the conflict. On Sunday, a Putin ally said it will lead to a "global catastrophe" by weakening arguments against using nuclear weapons.

       But German Chancellor Olaf Scholz decided to approve sending Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, and will allow other countries -- such as Poland -- to do so as well.

       Poland and Lithuania to send German-made Leopard tanks to Ukraine

       Countries wanting to export the tank must first ask Berlin's permission as they are German-made.

       Der Spiegel, which broke the news, said Germany was planning to supply at least one company of Leopard 2 A6 tanks, some 14 tanks in total.

       Other European allies intend to go along with Germany in supplying their Leopards, the magazine reported.

       Support for Ukraine

       In Spain, El País is reporting that the government is poised to commit to sending tanks to Ukraine.

       The paper says a condition of the Spanish government participating in the operation to provide Ukraine with a system capable of counteracting the firepower of modern Russian tanks is the existence of an agreement at European level.

       'Free the Leopards!' Campaign aims to 'embarrass' Germany into sending tanks to Ukraine

       Kyiv hailed the move as a potential game-changer on the battlefield, even if some believe the number of tanks falls short of what is needed to liberate Russian-controlled areas.

       "A few hundred tanks for our tank crews .... This is what is going to become a real punching fist of democracy," Andriy Yermak, the head of Zelenskiy's administration, wrote on Telegram.

       There is still no official confirmation from Washington.

       One US official told Reuters their country would send about 30 M1 Abrams tanks over the coming months.

       Fielded by some 20 armies around the world, Leopard 2 tanks are seen as the best option, since they are available in large numbers and easy to maintain.

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       Ukraine has officially admitted to withdrawing troops from the eastern town of Soledar on Wednesday, after a months-long bloody battle. But Ukrainian army spokesman Sergui Tcherevaty did not specify when it took place.

       "After months of difficult fighting... the Ukrainian armed forces left [Soledar]," he said.

       "[To] retreat to prepared positions."

       Recent weeks have seen vicious fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces in the salt mining town, which sits in the hotly-contested Donbas region.

       Moscow has portrayed the fight as key to seizing the strategic town of Bakhmut and the prized Donbas region. But the importance of the town is debated.

       The US think tank, Institute for the Study of War, said it was "not an operationally significant development".

       A war of words has accompanied fighting on the ground. On 13 January, Moscow claimed its forces had seized the besieged salt mining town, but Kyiv immediately rejected that.

       Days earlier, the Russian private military group Wagner said it had taken Soledar.

       Russian capture of Soledar could pave the way for Bakhmut invasion

       This is the first time Ukraine has officially recognised the loss of the town, which was once home to 11,000 people before the Russian invasion.

       Tcherevaty said the retreat was "controlled" with "no encirclement or massive capture of our soldiers", and denied that soldiers had leaked information about its fate.

       He claimed Ukrainian troops "inflicted incredible losses" on the Russians, and emphasised that Kyiv's strategy was to "wear out the enemy".

       Casualty figures are highly-contested on both sides, and Euronews cannot verify this claim.

       Russian officials said their soldiers had made advances towards Bakhmut on Wednesday, citing the capture of Soledar as the reason why.

       For more watch Euronews' report in the video above.

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       The US Justice Department and eight states are suing Google alleging that the tech giant is harming competition by monopolising online advertising.

       The department's suit accuses Google of unlawfully controlling the way ads are served online by excluding competitors.

       This includes its 2008 acquisition of DoubleClick, a dominant ad server, and subsequent rollout of technology that locks in the split-second bidding process for ads that get served on web pages.

       The government also says Google’s plan to assert dominance has been to “neutralise or eliminate” rivals through acquisitions and to force advertisers to use its products by making it difficult to use competitors’ products.

       Amazon, Microsoft, Meta: The growing list of tech companies cutting jobs and freezing hiring Google announces 12,000 layoffs worldwide as tech giants continue to slash jobs Google must remove search results about people if they can prove it's wrong, top EU court says

       As a minimum, the lawsuit is aimed at making Google split off its advertising business - its ad manager suite and ad exchange - as well as “any additional structural relief as needed to cure any anticompetitive harm."

       Representatives for Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company, said the suit “doubles down on a flawed argument that would slow innovation, raise advertising fees, and make it harder for thousands of small businesses and publishers to grow.”

       This is the latest legal action taken against Google by either the US Justice Department or local state governments.

       In October 2020, the Trump administration and eleven state attorney generals sued Google for violating antitrust laws, alleging anticompetitive practices in the search and search advertising markets.

       The states taking part in this latest suit include California, Virginia, Connecticut, Colorado, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Tennessee.

       Watch video in player above.