Ukraine President calls for peace talks as Russia claims hypersonic weapon strike

China calls for Ukraine-Russia peace talks

PENTAGON: China is hoping there will be a peaceful solution to the conflict in Ukraine and is urging Russia and Ukraine to come to the table for peace talks, China’s foreign minister told his Ukrainian counterpart in a telephone conversation. China’s foreign ministry said in a statement that Qin Gang told Dmytro Kuleba China “has […]

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China urges Russia, Ukraine to hold talks, warns against using nuclear weapons

BEIJING, Feb. 24: China called on Friday for Russia and Ukraine to hold peace talks as soon as possible, while insisting that nuclear weapons must not be used in their conflict. Beijing's foreign ministry made the comments in a document on the "political settlement" of the crisis, timed to coincide with the one-year anniv

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Facts about Russia-Ukraine conflict: Ukrainian parliament extends martial law by 90 days

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Ukraine war: Russia says it will curb Kyiv assault as peace talks progress

MARCH 30: The decision to scale back operations around the capital, Kyiv, and the northern city of Chernihiv is the first sign of tangible progress. But it is unclear how extensive any reduction in military activity might be, and Ukraine remains sceptical. Russia had already refocused its campaign on Ukraine's eastern regions. It has suffered a series of setbacks to the north-west of the capital, Kyiv, and is also seeking to capture a land corridor which stretches along the south coast to the Russian border. President Volodymyr Zelensky, however, said he saw no reason to believe the words of some Russian representatives. "We can say that the signals... are positive, but those signals do not drown out the explosions or Russian shells," he said in a video address late Tuesday. Officials in Washington said they had already seen the Russians draw away from Kyiv, but they were still pounding the capital with air strikes . The US said it had little confidence that the announcement marked any significant shift or meaningful retreat. The US had not seen "signs of real seriousness" from Russia in pursuing peace talks, said Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who pointed to the continued "brutalisation" of Ukraine's people. During the talks in the Turkish city of Istanbul, Ukraine proposed to become a neutral state in exchange for security guarantees. A key aim of Russia's invasion was to stop Ukraine joining the Nato alliance and Russian officials said the talks had moved to a practical stage. Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin, who was in Istanbul, told Russian TV that as "Ukraine's neutrality and non-nuclear status and security guarantees" had progressed, the defence ministry had taken the decision to cut its operations dramatically in the two areas to "create the necessary conditions for further negotiations and for the signing of the aforementioned agreement". Ukrainian negotiator Oleksandr Chaly told reporters that its offer of neutrality was a chance to "restore the territorial integrity and security of Ukraine through diplomatic and political means". Ukraine's aim was to "fix its status as a de facto non-bloc and non-nuclear state in the form of permanent neutrality". The discussions here lasted around three hours. Very little was leaked, and nearly all media were kept away in a packed area on a pavement outside. The key points became clear as members of the Ukrainian delegation came out onto the street an hour before the expected finish. The negotiators said they had proposed to Russia that Ukraine adopt a neutral status in exchange for security guarantees - an international mechanism where guarantor countries would act to protect Ukraine in future. In return Kyiv would not join Nato, a key Russian demand. This was not a new pledge, but it was spelt out in the clearest detail yet. Many are sceptical about what Russia's announcement about reducing military operations actually means; whether it's a pledge to pull back or merely an acceptance it has already failed in those areas and will instead turn its full force further east. Western countries, therefore, are saying they will judge Russia by its actions and not its words. Russian forces have encircled Chernihiv, where officials say up to 400 people have been killed and some 130,000 residents are without heating, electricity or water supplies. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson's spokesman said that Russia had twisted the knife in Ukraine and that "we must judge Putin's regime by their actions not their words". Russia's chief negotiator, Vladimir Medinsky, said talks had been "meaningful" and Ukraine's proposals on neutrality would be put to President Vladimir Putin, holding out the possibility of a summit involving President Zelensky. However, he made clear that before that could happen a treaty would have to be drafted and approved by negotiators, and then signed by foreign ministers. "This is not a ceasefire but this is our aspiration, gradually to reach a de-escalation of the conflict at least on these fronts," Mr Medinsky told Russian state news agency Tass. Launching the invasion, Mr Putin had described Nato as a threat that was becoming more dangerous to Russia by the year. However, there was no mention in the talks of Mr Putin's regular demands that Ukraine be demilitarised or that it be "de-Nazified", an allegation that has been widely ridiculed as Russian propaganda. Ukraine's negotiators in Istanbul handed the Russians detailed proposals covering neutrality and other core issues in the conflict: -Ukraine would become a "non-bloc and non-nuclear" state, with no foreign military bases or contingents on its territory -This would have strict, legally binding guarantees from countries including the UK, China, the USA, Turkey, France, Canada, Italy, Poland and Israel which would agree to protect a neutral Ukraine in the event of attack -Ukraine would not enter military-political alliances and any international exercises would require consent of guarantor states -The future status of Crimea, seized by Russia in 2014, would be decided by 15 years of consultations -The future of the eastern areas held by Russian-backed separatists would be discussed by the two presidents. Ukrainian negotiator David Arakhamia said this framework would enable to ceasefire to be agreed without Crimea and the eastern regions being settled. The proposals would also enable Ukraine to join the European Union, while barring it from becoming part of Nato's defensive military alliance. With inputs from BBC

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Asian shares higher ahead of Russia-Ukraine peace talks

Asian shares were higher Tuesday after an advance on Wall Street ahead of another round of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.

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Ukraine-Russia peace talks could last several weeks

Peace talks with Russia could last "several weeks" as negotiations on several issues between the two countries "may take longer"

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Russia introduces "silence regime" in Ukraine for safe evacuation of civilians

MOSCOW, March 9: Russian armed forces have declared a "silence regime" and the opening of humanitarian corridors for the safe evacuation of civilians in Ukraine starting 10 a.m. Moscow time (0700 GMT) on Tuesday. "Humanitarian corridors from Kiev, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkov and Mariupol are being opened," local media reported, citing Russian Defense Ministry spokesperson Igor Konashenkov. On the same day, Ukraine started evacuating residents from the northeastern city of Sumy through a humanitarian corridor as agreed with Russia, Ukraine's UNIAN news agency reported. During the third round of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine on Monday, both sides addressed the issue of civilian evacuation, and the Ukrainian side assured Russia that the humanitarian corridors would start working.

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Fighting continues as Russia, Ukraine expected to resume talks

MOSCOW/KIEV, March 2: Fighting continues as Russia's "special military operation" in Ukraine has entered the seventh day, while a new round of peace talks is reportedly to take place. A massive Russian airstrike hit the center of Ukraine's second-largest city of Kharkiv on Tuesday, as rockets struck residential areas and buildings of the regional state administration, according to Ukraine's State Service for Emergencies. The agency on Tuesday reported Russia's attack on the Kiev TV tower which had killed five people and injured five others. Russia would strike the information warfare and psychological operation center of the Ukrainian Armed Forces as well as technological facilities of the Ukrainian Security Service in Kiev with high-precision weapons, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov told a regular briefing on Tuesday. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu vowed to continue the military operation in Ukraine until achieving the main goal of defending Russia from Western threats. "The main thing for us is to protect Russia from the military threat posed by Western countries that are trying to use the Ukrainian people in the fight against our country," Shoigu said during a video conference with senior defense officials. Since the military operation started on Thursday, the Russian Armed Forces had destroyed 1,325 Ukrainian military infrastructure objects, Konashenkov said. In addition, 395 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 59 multiple launch rocket systems, 179 field artillery guns and mortars as well as 286 units of special military vehicles had been destroyed, he added. The access of Ukrainian troops to the Sea of Azov had been completely blocked, Konashenkov told reporters. In the meantime, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called on foreign ministers of Poland, France and Germany to increase sanctions pressure on Russia and provide more weapons and financial support to Ukraine. Amid the deadly conflict, Russian and Ukrainian delegations held on Monday their first round of negotiations in search of a solution to the crisis in Belarus' Gomel region, with no clear breakthrough. The second round of the peace talks could reportedly take place on Wednesday, TASS news agency reported citing sources. According to BelTA news agency, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko did not rule out the possibility of a meeting between Russian and Ukrainian presidents if progress was to made in the negotiations. But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that it was too early to talk about such a meeting.

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Russia, Ukraine conclude first-round talks without clear breakthrough

MOSCOW, March 1: Russia and Ukraine concluded on Monday their first round of negotiations in Belarus with no clear breakthrough. The talks are certainly a positive signal, observed analysts, but the negotiation process would be rather complicated. NO BREAKTHROUGH The long-awaited negotiations between delegations from Russia and Ukraine was held in the Gomel region in Belarus and lasted for five hours. Headed by presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, Moscow's delegation was formed by representatives from the defense and foreign ministries, among others. Ukrainian Defense Minister Olexiy Reznikov and the deputy head of the ministry of foreign affairs were among the participants from the Ukrainian side. Before the negotiations, representatives from the Russian side said a key aim would be to achieve peace. Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei welcomed the participants and assured safety during the negotiation process. After the consultations, Medinsky, head of the Russian delegation, said that the next round of peace talks would take place on the Belarusian-Polish border in the coming days. Medinsky also said that each one of the delegations would now head back to their capitals to further discuss all negotiation positions to prepare for the next round of negotiations. "We have found some issues on which we can predict there would be common positions," the official said, adding that all negotiation positions were discussed in detail during the talks. HEIGHTENED TENSIONS While the talks were going on, Russian President Vladimir Putin held a telephone call with French President Emmanuel Macron, reiterating that a settlement would only be possible if Russia's security concerns were taken into account. Putin said it was important to recognize "Russia's sovereignty over Crimea," as well as the country's commitment to solving the tasks of Ukraine's "demilitarization" and "denazification", and the issue of Ukraine's neutral status. As for developments of Russia's military operation, the country's armed forces have hit 1,114 Ukrainian military infrastructure objects, according to Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu informed Putin earlier on Monday that the country's nuclear deterrence forces have begun combat duty with reinforced staff. Meanwhile, Moscow has taken more retaliatory measures in response to recent restrictions imposed by the West. As a response to the ban of European states on Russian air carriers, a restriction has been introduced on the operation of flights by air carriers from 36 countries, according to aviation authorities. The country's economy has also been impacted. Russia's Central Bank said Monday that "external conditions for the Russian economy have drastically changed," announcing the decision to increase the key rate to 20 percent per annum from Feb. 28. COMPLICATED NEGOTIATION The world is closely following developments with regards to the peace talks. "The talks are certainly a positive signal," Bogdan Bezpalko, a member of the Council for Interethnic Relations under the President of the Russian Federation, said in an interview with Xinhua on Monday. According to the expert, Russia has shown that it is ready to solve problems through diplomacy. Alexander Gusev, director of Russia's Institute for Strategic Planning and Forecasting, considered the current negotiation process to be rather complicated. "The situation that is currently developing in Ukraine is quite complicated, so it's simply impossible to set ambitious goals when it comes to the negotiation process," Gusev told Xinhua. "On the other hand, the talks have shown that both sides are ready for dialogue, they have found common ground... and I am convinced that the negotiation process will continue, this is just the beginning," he said.

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Ukraine rejects Belarus as location for talks with Russia

Ukraine’s president says his country is ready for peace talks with Russia but not in Belarus, which was a staging ground for Moscow’s 3-day-old invasion.

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Ukraine President calls for peace talks as Russia claims hypersonic weapon strike

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Asian shares were higher Tuesday after an advance on Wall Street ahead of another round of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.

Peace talks with Russia could last "several weeks" as negotiations on several issues between the two countries "may take longer"

Ukraine’s president says his country is ready for peace talks with Russia but not in Belarus, which was a staging ground for Moscow’s 3-day-old invasion.