The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, yesterday asked the parties to the conflict to respect international humanitarian law and reported that he will open an investigation into the situation in Ukraine “as soon as possible”.
The Moscow and Kiev delegations met for several hours in the Gomel region of Belarus, near the border with Ukraine, and then returned to their capitals for consultations, Ukrainian chief negotiator Mikhailo Podoliak said.
“The parties established a number of priorities and issues that require some decisions,” said Podoliak, while his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Medinski, indicated that the new meeting will take place “soon” on the border between Poland and Belarus.
The invasion launched by Putin on Thursday unleashed a cascade of sanctions by Western countries and their allies that include blocking access to the financial system, but also a closure of airspace for Russian planes.
Yesterday, the European Union added six oligarchs, several personalities close to the Russian president -including his spokesman-, and a dozen journalists to the black list of personalities sanctioned with a freezing of their assets.
Many countries have also offered weapons to Ukraine, including Finland, but have insisted they will not engage militarily.
At a United Nations Security Council meeting on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the United States announced the expulsion of 12 diplomats from the Russian mission to the UN and accused them of “espionage.”
Russia rejected the move shortly afterward, calling the act “hostile,” Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoli Antonov said.
The UN General Assembly began yesterday with a minute of silence in memory of the victims of the invasion, in an emergency session to discuss the conflict.
Ukraine demands a ceasefire and the withdrawal of Russian troops and President Volodymyr Zelensky, on social networks, urged the invaders to “lay down their arms” and “save their lives”. Zelenski also asked the European Union (EU) to immediately admit his country to the block, but in Brussels “there are different opinions” on the matter, responded the president of the European Council, Charles Michel.
On his side, Putin demanded from his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, the recognition of the Crimean peninsula, which he annexed in 2014, as Russian territory and the demilitarization and “denazification” of Ukraine as preliminary conditions to a resolution of the conflict, indicated the Kremlin after a telephone conversation between the two leaders.
The Russian president stressed that the resolution of the conflict “was possible only if the legitimate security interests of Russia were taken into account without condition,” according to the Kremlin.
Both the talks and the conflict on the ground are marked by the threat launched on Sunday by Putin, who ordered the nuclear deterrence forces to be placed on high alert.
On the ground, the Ukrainians appear to be increasing their resistance against the Russians, who have yet to announce any resounding victory. Long lines formed outside supermarkets in the city. In the streets, brigades of volunteers wearing yellow and blue ties in the national colors erected makeshift barricades.
Yesterday, the Ukrainian authorities claimed that they repelled several assaults against Kiev, where the curfew was lifted in the morning
The Russian invasion is becoming “increasingly brutal,” said the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, on Monday. “Ukrainian forces respond with courage. Kiev resists, as well as Mariúpol and Kharkov”, said Borrell. Macron called on Putin to avoid targeting civilians.
The balance of the conflict remains uncertain, with Ukraine reporting 200 civilian and dozens of military deaths since Thursday, including 16 children. For its part, the UN registered 102 dead civilians, including 7 children and 304 wounded, but warned that the real figures may be higher.
Source: Ambito
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