Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has recalled Ukraine’s ambassadors to Georgia and Morocco, suggesting they hadn’t done enough to persuade those countries to support Ukraine and punish Russia for the invasion.
“With all due respect, if there won’t be weapons, won’t be sanctions, won’t be restrictions for Russian business, then please look for other work,” Zelenskyy said in his nighttime video address to the nation Wednesday. “I am waiting for concrete results in the coming days from the work of our representatives in Latin America, the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Africa.”
Zelenskyy also said he was expecting results from Ukraine’s military attaches in embassies abroad.
He said “the diplomatic front is one of the key fronts” in Ukraine’s battle to win the war against Russia.
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KEY DEVELOPMENTS IN THE RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR:
— Russia shells areas in Ukraine where it vowed to scale back
— Poland to end Russian oil imports; Germany warns on gas
— UN agency says 4 million refugees have now fled Ukraine
— UN food chief says Ukraine war’s food crisis is worst since WWII
OTHER DEVELOPMENTS:
Talks between Ukraine and Russia will resume on Friday by video, according to head of the Ukrainian delegation, David Arakhamia.
The delegations met in-person on Tuesday in Istanbul, after two weeks of meeting by video, and the faint outlines of a possible peace agreement seemed to emerge.
The Ukrainian delegation offered a framework under with the country would declare itself neutral – dropping its bid to join NATO, as Moscow has long demanded – in return for security guarantees from a group of other nations.
Russian diplomats responded positively to Ukraine’s proposal.
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An aircraft-leasing company has filed $3.5 billion in insurance claims for planes and aircraft engines that are stranded in Russia because of sanctions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
AerCap said it had leased 135 planes to Russian airlines and has repossessed 22 of them outside of Russia.
The Dublin-based company said AerCap says it’s unclear whether it will recover more, and Russian airlines continue to use its planes even though it terminated the leases and demanded that the planes be returned.
After sanctions prohibited U.S. and European companies from leasing, selling or servicing planes and aircraft parts to Russia, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law letting his country’s airlines re-register foreign planes and use them for domestic flights.
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The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency visited a nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine on Wednesday to meet Ukrainian officials and provide technical assistance.
Rafael Mariano Grossi said the IAEA is not involved in political talks with the Russians.
“We are trying to be very active in order to ensure that as soon as possible, the situation is regressed, and the facilities are back in the hands of the Ukrainians,” Grossi said.
Ukraine has 15 nuclear reactors at four plants, one of which (Zaporizhzia) is under the Russian military’s control.
Ukraine also is home to the decommissioned Chernobyl plant, the site of the 1986 nuclear accident, which the Russian military seized early in the war. As of Tuesday, eight reactors were operating and the rest were shut down for regular maintenance.
— A U.K. intelligence chief is warning that Russia is looking for cyber targets and bringing in mercenaries to shore up its stalled military campaign in Ukraine.
Jeremy Fleming, who heads the U.K.’s GCHQ electronic spy agency, said Russian President Vladimir Putin “massively misjudged” his chances for a swift military victory in Ukraine.
In a speech in Australia, Fleming praised Ukraine’s “information operation” for effectively countering Russia’s big disinformation campaign about the war.
While there were expectations that Russia would launch a major cyberattack as part of its military campaign, Fleming said such a move was never part of Moscow’s playbook.
But Fleming warns that Russia’s “cyber actors are looking for targets in the countries that oppose their actions.”
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked the White House for pledging an additional $500 million in direct aid, but said he was open with U.S. President Biden about Ukraine needing more to resist the Russian invasion.
“If we really are fighting for freedom and in defense of democracy together, then we have a right to demand help in this difficult turning point,” Zelenskyy said in his nighttime video address to the nation Wednesday. “Tanks, aircraft, artillery systems. Freedom should be armed no worse than tyranny.”
Prior to Wednesday’s announcement of $500 million in aid, the Biden administration had sent Ukraine about $2 billion in humanitarian and security assistance since the start of the war last month. That’s all part of the $13.6 billion that Congress approved earlier this month for Ukraine as part of a broader spending bill.
Zelenskyy said the negotiations with Russia were continuing but for now, they were only “words without specifics.”
About the supposed withdrawal of Russian forces from Kyiv and Chernihiv, Zelenskyy said: “We know that this is not a withdrawal but the consequences of being driven out. But we also are seeing that Russia is now concentrating its forces for new strikes on Donbas and we are preparing for this.”
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The United Nations chief said Wednesday that one-quarter of humanity -- two billion people -- are living in conflict areas today and the world is facing the highest number of violent conflicts since 1945 when World War II ended.
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres cited conflicts from Yemen, Syria, Myanmar and Sudan to Haiti, Africa’s Sahel, “and now the war in Ukraine — a catastrophe shaking the foundations of the international order, spilling across borders and causing skyrocketing food, fuel and fertilizer prices that spell disaster for developing countries.”
He told the U.N. Peacebuilding Commission on Wednesday that last year 84 million people were forced to leave their homes because of conflict, violence and human rights violations. And that doesn’t include the Ukraine war which has already seen 4 million people flee the country and displaced another 6.5 million within the country, according to U.N. agencies.
Guterres said the U.N. estimates that this year “at least 274 million will need humanitarian assistance.” This represents a 17% increase from 2021 and will cost $41 billion for the 183 million people targeted for aid, according to the U.N. humanitarian office.
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The White House has pledged an additional $500 million in direct aid for Ukraine as the Russian invasion grinds on.
U.S. President Joe Biden told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a 55 minute call Wednesday that the additional aid was on its way. The leaders also reviewed security aid already delivered to Ukraine and the effects that weaponry has had on the war, according to the White House.
Zelesnkyy has pressed the Biden administration and other Western allies to provide Ukraine with military jets. The U.S. and other NATO countries have thus far been unwilling to accommodate that request out of concern it could lead to Russia broadening the war beyond Ukraine’s borders.
Prior to Wednesday’s announcement of $500 million in aid, the Biden administration had sent Ukraine about $2 billion in humanitarian and security assistance since the start of the war last month.
The $500 million could come from $13.6 billion that Congress approved earlier this month for Ukraine as part of a broader spending bill. The White House is also looking at possibly using funding authorized prior to approval of the spending bill.
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The German government says it has received assurances from Russia that European companies won’t have to pay for Russian gas supplies in rubles.
Olaf Scholz’s office said the German chancellor spoke by phone Wednesday afternoon with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who had requested the call, about the issue.
During the call Putin said he planned to issue a law requiring gas supplies to be paid in rubles from April 1, Scholz’s office said.
“At the same time (Putin— emphasized during the conversation that there would be no change for European contractual partners,” who would continue to pay only in euros to Gazprom Bank, it said.
The bank, which is not currently subject to sanctions, would convert the payments to rubles,” Scholz’s office added.
It noted that the German chancellor did not agree to the procedure but instead requested written information to understand it better.
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Britain’s government has announced new legal powers prohibiting U.K. maintenance on planes and ships belonging to Russian oligarchs. The Foreign Office said Wednesday the new sanctions have been used immediately against billionaire oil tycoon Eugene Shvidler and Oleg Tinkov, founder of Tinkoff bank.
Shvidler, who’s already sanctioned over his business links to Roman Abramovich, has had two private jets seized.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the new law adds to Britain’s powers to “deprive oligarchs’ access to their luxury toys.”
British authorities on Tuesday seized a Russian-owned superyacht valued at $38 million. They did not identify the owner of the vessel, only saying the billionaire was connected to President Vladimir Putin.
The government also said that finance, trade and shipping sanctions imposed on Crimea have been expanded to the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
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The Pentagon said Wednesday that over the last 24 hours it has seen some Russian troops in the areas around Kyiv moving north toward or into Belarus.
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said the U.S. does not view this as a withdrawal, but as an attempt by Russia to resupply, refit and then reposition the troops.
“We don’t know exactly where these troops are going to go,” he said.
But he noted that Russia has talked about prioritizing the Donbas region. Kirby was speaking on CNN and Fox Business.
Kirby also said that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Army Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have continued to try to speak with their Russian counterparts but they have “not answered and they have not replied with a willingness to do so.”
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British Prime Minister Boris Johnson says Western nations shouldn’t lift sanctions on Russia until all Moscow’s troops have left Ukraine.
Johnson said a cease fire would not be enough, and the G-7 should “intensify sanctions with a rolling program until every single one of (President Vladimir Putin’s) troops is out of Ukraine.”
Speaking to a committee of British lawmakers on Wednesday, Johnson also said Britain was discussing “going up a gear” in support to help Ukraine defend itself. He said sending armored personnel carriers was something the U.K. was “looking at.”
The U.K. has sent anti-tank weapons and other military equipment to Ukraine but wants to avoid anything that could be seen as escalating the conflict.
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Slovakia’s Foreign Ministry says it has decided to reduce the Russian diplomatic mission in the country by 35 people.
The ministry said on Wednesday the Russian side was informed about the move in a diplomatic note.
“The given step is an inevitable reaction to the continuing activities of the Russian embassy’s personnel that violate the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations, Slovakia’s interests and an effort to develop partnership relations with the Russian Federation,” the ministry said.
Slovakia already expelled three Russian diplomats two weeks ago over a spying scandal.
At least four European allies expelled dozens of Russian diplomats on Tuesday, an apparent coordinated effort to tackle espionage.
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The U.N. human rights chief says her office is looking into allegations that some residents of the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol have been forcibly evacuated to areas controlled by Russian forces or to Russia itself.
Speaking to the U.N.’s Human Rights Council on Wednesday, Michelle Bachelet decried life of “sheer terror” for people in the southeastern port city since Russia’s invasion on Feb. 24.
Ukraine has charged that Russian forces were forcibly taking people from Mariupol and other areas to Russia. Moscow has denied the claims, saying about 500,000 Ukrainians left for Russia voluntarily.
Bachelet said her office also is reviewing “credible allegations” that Russian forces have used cluster munitions 24 times and allegations that Ukrainian forces also have done so.
She says the office also received allegations that two civilians affiliated with Russian armed forces, or backing pro-Russian views, had been killed. She criticized “widespread” detention of civilians who openly support Ukraine in areas under Russian control.
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Head of Russia’s delegation in talks with Ukraine this week says that Kyiv’s readiness to consider a neutral status would meet a key Russian demand.
Vladimir Medinsky said that, during Tuesday’s talks in Istanbul, Ukraine submitted a set of proposals including its readiness to adopt a non-bloc, nuclear-free status and drop its bid to join NATO.
He said Ukraine also signaled its readiness not to host foreign military bases and to hold joint drills with foreign militaries only in consultation with countries serving as guarantors of a peace deal, which would include Russia.
Medinsky said in televised comments that the proposals signaled Ukraine’s readiness to reach agreement “for the first time in years,” adding that “if it fulfills the obligations, the threat of creating a NATO bridgehead on the Ukrainian territory will be removed.”
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An adviser to Ukraine’s president says that a vote sealing a prospective agreement with Russia could only be held after Russian troops pull back.
Mykhailo Podolyak said Wednesday that the Russian forces must withdraw to their positions before the Feb. 24 invasion to pave the way for any peace deal to be put on a nationwide referendum.
In an online briefing, he voiced hope for a meeting soon between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin but wouldn’t say when exactly it could happen.
Podolyak took part in Tuesday’s talks with Russian negotiators in Istanbul. He said a deal on multilateral security guarantees for Ukraine will be a key part of the package to be discussed.
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Hungary’s foreign minister has accused Ukraine’s leadership of attempting to interfere in the upcoming Hungarian election. His Ukrainian counterpart has denied the charge in an episode that put further strain on relations.
In a video on social media, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto claimed that there was “ongoing coordination between the Hungarian left and representatives of the Ukrainian government,” and that Ukraine was attempting to influence Hungary’s April 3 election in favor of a coalition of opposition parties.
Szijjarto did not provide any evidence supporting the claim.
The statements came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made several recent comments that were harshly critical of the Hungarian government’s approach to the war.
On Wednesday, Szijjarto claimed that Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, had contacted Ukraine’s ambassador in Budapest to discuss how Ukraine could influence Hungary’s election, in which Prime Minister Viktor Orban is seeking a fourth consecutive term.
But Kuleba told Ukrainian newspaper Evropeiska Pravda that “we have never interfered in Hungary’s internal affairs and especially not ahead of an election.”
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A senior Ukrainian official says the country’s delegation to talks with Russia has remained in Turkey to discuss military issues.
David Arakhamia, a member of the Ukrainian delegation who also leads the governing party’s group in parliament, posted on social media that meetings with “high-ranking Turkish officials during which cooperation in the military-technical field will be discussed” were planned for Wednesday.
Turkey is a supplier of drones which Ukrainian forces have used to destroy Russian vehicles from the air.
Russian media reported that the Russian delegation returned home Tuesday after the talks with Ukraine.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has told the Norwegian Parliament that Russia wants “to destroy the foundation of Europe.”
Zelenskyy, speaking through an interpreter during a live video appearance before the 169-member Stortinget, said Wednesday that “the future of Europe is being decided now.”
Speaking generally of Russia’s military activities in Ukraine, Zelenskyy said that “for the Russians, there are no prohibited targets.”
Zelenskyy’s speech was the latest of a string of addresses to lawmakers in several countries, including the United States, Britain, Sweden, Germany, Canada, Israel, Japan and the European Union.
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Ukrainian military says that Russian troops have intensified their activities in the country’s east.
The Ukrainian general staff said Wednesday that the Russians have scaled up their activities around Izyum, south of Kharkiv, after redeploying some units from other areas. It also said that the Russian forces have intensified shelling and attacks in the eastern Donetsk region, focusing on trying to win control of Mariupol, Popasna and Rubizhne.
The Russian military has said it has shifted its focus to Ukraine’s eastern industrial heartland, the Donbas, where Moscow-backed separatists have fought Ukrainian forces since 2014.
AP
