This was announced by the Russian military on Tuesday “Sharply” reduced its military activity near the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and the northern city of Chernihiv, when talks with Ukraine aimed at ending the war, moved to the “practical” stage.
Russia and Ukraine held face-to-face talks Tuesday in Turkey as the United Nations insisted on a ceasefire for A brutal Russian invasion. The talks took place in the office of the President of Turkey in Istanbul and lasted more than three hours, according to Russian TASS.
Russia’s Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Famin said the military cuts had been made to “boost mutual trust and create conditions for further talks.”
The Ukrainian military said it had seen the retreat of troops around the cities, and U.S. General Todd Walters, commander of U.S. European Command, said “exactly what we see.” Russia’s offensive on Kyiv has stalled in recent weeks, but missile strikes have hit the city and resulted in a shortage of food, water and other necessities for a population of nearly 3 million.
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The head of the Ukrainian delegation David Arahamiya said that his side had submitted a formal proposal for a new system of security guarantees. The proposed promise of security will not apply to parts of Ukraine, the status of which remains controversial – Crimea, which Russia considers its territory, and split off the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics.
“We insist that it be an international treaty signed by all security guarantors who ratify,” he said. “We want it to be an international mechanism of concrete security guarantees for Ukraine.”
Leading Russian negotiator Vladimir Medinsky said Ukraine had pledged not to join any military alliance and not to deploy foreign military bases or foreign troops. According to the proposal, even military exercises require the prior approval of guarantors.
Kyiv has also vowed not to seek weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear ones, Medinsky said. In return, Ukraine demands that Russia one day not object to Ukraine’s accession to the EU.
The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky stated that his country is ready to declare its neutrality, as required by Moscow, and is open to compromise on the disputed eastern region of Donbass for the next 15 years.
Recent events
► Russian leaders “do not think about the use … even of the idea of using” nuclear weapons, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
► President Biden held a call on Tuesday with European leaders including Emanuel Macron of France, Olaf Scholz of Germany, Maria Draghi of Italy and Boris Johnson of the United Kingdom to discuss recent developments regarding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the White House said.
► Information technology companies are focused on providing reliable information and deterring Russian propaganda about the invasion, said Google CEO Sundar Pichai in Warsaw at a meeting with Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.
► In just over a month of war, Russia has destroyed more than 60 religious buildings across the country. Most of the damage is concentrated near Kiev and in the east of the country, the Ukrainian military said on Tuesday.
► Seven people were killed when a Russian rocket hit a nine-story government building in Mykolaiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday. According to him, 22 people were injured.
Kremlin: US-Russia dialogue crucial despite Biden’s “insults”
Negative criticism of Russian President Joe Biden against Russian President Vladimir Putin is negatively affecting relations, but the dialogue between Moscow and Washington is in the interests of the whole world, Peskov said on Tuesday.
“Rites cannot but leave an imprint on relations between heads of state,” Peskov said. “Especially a personal insult, which should not have a place in the rhetoric of the head of state.”
In recent days, Biden has called Putin a war criminal and suggested that Russia may need a regime change. The White House later assured that the US leader was not calling for regime change in Russia.
“One way or another, sooner or later we will have to talk about issues of strategic stability, security and so on, in other words, those issues that only we can and should discuss,” he said.
Europe sends dozens of Russian diplomats home
At least four European allies expelled dozens of Russian diplomats on Tuesday as relations between Russia and the West continue to deteriorate since the invasion. The Netherlands has said it is expelling 17 Russians, whom they have called intelligence officers posing as diplomats. Belgium has said it is expelling 21 Russians and the Czech Republic one. Ireland has told four high-ranking Russian officials to leave the country because of actions that do not meet international standards of diplomatic conduct. All this after Poland expelled 45 Russians last week.
“Together with our allies, we are reducing the presence of Russian intelligence in the EU,” the Czech Foreign Ministry said.
The presence of American troops in Europe has almost doubled to 100,000
The U.S. military presence in Europe has increased from 60,000 to about 100,000 as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, General Walters told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday.
“Russia’s deliberate and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine has intensified our allies and global partners,” he said. “NATO’s capabilities in space and cyberspace are more closely integrated than at any other time in the Alliance’s history.”
Walters said the United States was supplying military equipment to Ukraine in line with the military company’s supply and demand, “to ensure that they receive the right equipment at the right time … so that they can best defend their forces.”
Asked why Russia used hypersonic weapons in Ukraine, Walters replied that it was most likely done “to instill fear in the heart of the enemy, and I don’t think it was successful.” According to him, most of these strikes were aimed at military facilities.
– Katie Waddington
Russia: Putin and Zelensky may meet before a final deal is reached
Russia’s chief negotiator Vladimir Medinsky said the first day of talks between Ukraine and Russia was “constructive.” He said that the meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky could take place as soon as the parameters of the peace agreement are concluded. Zelensky insisted on meeting with Putin for several weeks, but Russian negotiators insisted the deal should be completed first.
Ukraine’s defense strategy may increase the danger to civilians
Experts say Ukraine’s defense against Russian attacks could increase risk for civilians in war-torn country The Washington Post. Most neighborhoods of Ukrainian cities have become “militarized”, making them potential targets for Russian troops, writes The Post. Russia is attacking some cities, and Ukrainians are responding by deploying air defense systems, heavy weapons, soldiers and volunteers in residential areas. All are rich targets for Russian missiles.
“I am very reluctant to say that Ukraine is responsible for the civilian casualties because Ukraine is fighting to protect its country from the aggressor,” said William Shabas, a professor of international law at Middlesex University in London. “But to the extent that Ukraine brings the battlefield to civilian areas, it increases the danger to civilians.”
Ukraine returns cities
Ukrainian forces continued their efforts to retake Russian-occupied territory. Ukrainian troops have recaptured Irpen, northwest of Kyiv, with Russian troops regrouping to retake the area, President Vladimir Zelensky said late Monday in a bid to unite the country. Ukrainian forces also regained control of Trostyanets south of Sumy in the northeast after weeks of Russian occupation.
“We still have to fight, we have to be patient,” Zelensky said in his night video address to the people. “We can’t express our emotions now. We can’t raise expectations just so we don’t burn out. “
The Ukrainian government said on Tuesday it was operating three humanitarian corridors to evacuate civilians from the blockaded port of Mariupol and two Russian-occupied cities in the south.
The cyberattack affected the national telecommunications provider of Ukraine
“Massive” cyber attack on Monday morning almost completely removed from the network of the Ukrainian national telecommunications provider “Ukrtelecom”, and the shutdowns continued until the evening. Network observers said it was the most serious shutdown since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine more than a month ago. Most Ukrainian customers have been disconnected from the service so that the Ukrainian military can continue to use them, said the chairman of the State Special Communications Service of Ukraine Yuri Shchigol.
Shchigol accused the “enemy” of cyberattacks, refraining from specific names for Russia.
– Selina Tebor
Many in the Middle East see hypocrisy in Ukraine’s western embrace
A few days after the Russian invasion, Western countries invoked international law, imposed harsh sanctions, began to greet refugees with open arms, and encouraged Ukraine’s armed resistance. The response has sparked outrage in the Middle East, where many see vivid double standards in how the West responds to international conflicts.
“We have seen that all the funds that we have been told cannot be activated for more than 70 years have been deployed in less than seven days,” Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad Malki told a security forum in Turkey earlier this month.
“Strange hypocrisy,” he said.
The Biden administration said Wednesday that the United States has assessed that Russian forces have committed war crimes in Ukraine and will cooperate with others to prosecute the perpetrators. But the United States is not a member of the International Criminal Court and is strongly opposed to any international investigation into its own behavior or that of its ally Israel.
Contributed by: Associated Press
