The move comes amid pressure from U.S. lawmakers to lower the draft age, though President Volodymyr Zelensky has opposed lowering it to 18, arguing it would harm Ukraine's future prospects.
President Donald Trump previously raised the accusation in 2023, saying Russia had stolen plans for what he described as "super-duper missiles."
The response comes after Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko criticized NATO's 2008 Bucharest Summit declaration, calling it "catastrophic for European security."
"Victory means restoring territorial integrity with a democratically legitimate government exercising full sovereignty," Friedrich Merz said.
North Korea is reportedly preparing to send more troops to Russia to fuel the war in Ukraine, even after significant losses, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) reported.
This number includes 1,500 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.
Key developments on Jan. 23: * Russian forces suspected of killing 6 Ukrainian POWs in Donetsk Oblast * Ukrainian soldiers near Velyka Novosilka at risk of encirclement, spokesperson says * Zelensky clarifies comment on 200,000 peacekeepers, says figure depends on Ukrainian army size * NATO chief urges US to keep arming Ukraine, pledges
President Donald Trump also said Ukraine was "ready for a deal," but added "you'll have to ask Russia" about a peace agreement within a year.
President Volodymyr Zelensky on Jan. 22 clarified his earlier comments on the number of European peacekeepers needed to maintain peace in Ukraine, saying the required numbers depend on the size of Ukraine’s own military.
The Sparta II, a Russian cargo ship under U.S. sanctions, had been drifting near Tartus since Jan. 5 after leaving Baltiysk in Kaliningrad Oblast on Dec. 11.
Russia's domestic economic operations have recently suffered due to labor shortages and high interest rates introduced to curb inflation.
Ukrainian prosecutors are investigating a case of Russian troops summarily executing six Ukrainian captives in the embattled Donetsk Oblast, the Prosecutor General’s Office said on Jan. 23.
This number includes 1,340 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.
Key developments on Jan. 22: * Ukraine's Special Forces say they killed 21 North Korean soldiers, show combat footage * Kyiv court arrests three senior officers accused of failed defense of Kharkiv Oblast * Russia lacks manpower for major breakthrough in Ukraine, top NATO general says * Russia issued ultimatum to Ukraine in 2022
This number includes 1,950 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) detained the chief psychiatrist of the Armed Forces over suspected illicit enrichment, the agency reported on Jan. 21.
This number includes 1,600 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.
The State Bureau of Investigation launched an investigation into the 155th "Anne of Kyiv" Brigade on Jan. 3.
The POW said he arrived in Russia on a cargo ferry with over 100 other North Korean soldiers.
This number includes 1,690 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.
Key developments on Jan. 19: * Ukraine hits 2 oil depots in Russia overnight * Zelensky slaps sanctions on Ukraine's top pro-Russian politicians * Lack of medical treatment, problems with unit transfers most common causes of appeals, new military ombudsman says * Ukrainian troops withdraw from, launch attack on Chasiv Yar refractory plant * SBU
Syria's new administration has banned all Russian, Iranian, and Israeli goods from entering the country in a new decree issued by the country's Minister of Finance on Jan. 17.
President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree imposing new sanctions on Ukraine's top pro-Russian politicians, he announced on Jan. 19.
Ukraine's State Emergency Service announced Jan. 18 that it received three specialized demining vehicles from Slovenia.
Amid a series of incidents that have damaged critical cables in the Baltic Sea, intelligence services in the U.S. and Europe are increasingly convinced that accidents led to the incidents, according to a new report by the Washington Post on Jan. 19.
Ukrainian forces shot down 43 Russian attack drones overnight, the Air Force reported on the morning of Jan. 19.
This number includes 1,580 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.
"If students cannot pass the exam ... if they refuse to take the military oath, they will not be able to study in higher education institutions in the future," Deputy Defense Minister Serhii Melnyk said.
These included K-51 and RG-VO munitions, anti-riot weapons that are prohibited for use in warfare, and ammunition loaded with chemicals of "unspecified type."
This number includes 1,340 casualties Russian forces suffered just over the past day.
The latest sanctions, imposed last week, targeted over 180 oil-carrying vessels of Russia's so-called shadow fleet, a group of aging tankers routinely used for sanction evasion.
Key developments on Jan. 17: * Putin, Pezeshkian sign strategic Russia-Iran partnership agreement in Moscow * Ukraine strikes Russian S-400 radar equipment in Belgorod Oblast, military claims * Biden administration secretly funded Ukraine's drone industry, NYT reports * US assured Putin no nuclear weapons in Ukraine, Biden says * There's no evidence that Australian fighter
