Russia-Ukraine talks end in stalemate; Kyiv almost empty | 5 points
India Today
Russia-Ukraine talks ended in a stalemate yet again. Ukraine had called for a ceasefire to evacuate civilians stranded in Mariupol. Russia refused to meet Ukraine's demands. Here are the top points.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba held talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Turkey on Thursday. The leaders were meeting for the first time since the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 28. The optimism did not last long, as talks ended in a stalemate. As the conflict entered Day 15, the Ukrainian government said that almost half of Kyiv's population fled the war. Here are the top five points.
Kuleba said Ukraine's demand for a ceasefire and humanitarian corridor to and from Mariupol was not accepted by Russia. Meanwhile, Lavrov said the meeting could not be an 'alternative' to the delegation-level talks held in Belarus earlier. Both sides have agreed to meet again if they can find a solution to end the war.
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Kuleba said, "I made a simple proposal to Minister Lavrov: I can call my Ukrainian ministers, authorities, president now and give you 100% assurances on security guarantees for humanitarian corridors. I asked him can he do the same and he did not respond."
Lavrov said Ukraine appeared to want meetings for the sake of meetings, and that a ceasefire was not meant to be on the agenda at Thursday's talks. Lavrov also brushed aside claims of 'nuclear warfare' and said he did not believe the conflict in Ukraine would spiral into a nuclear war. He said, "I don't want to believe it, and I do not believe it."
According to Oblast Governor Oleksiy Kuleba, the northwest regions of Kyiv remain the most dangerous area as they have been cut off from the capital Kyiv by Russian forces. This region includes cities like Bucha, Irpin, Hostomel and Vorzel. The government said that since the invasion began, about half of Kyiv population have fled the conflict.
At least 48,000 Ukrainians have been evacuated through humanitarian corridors.
