Peace negotiations between Russian and Ukrainian officials commenced early Monday morning on the Ukraine-Belarus border as the Russian military continues its offensive.
Ukraine said its objective for the talks, which it agreed to “without preconditions,” are an “immediate ceasefire and withdrawal of Russian troops,” the office of President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed Sunday. Ukraine’s delegation includes Ukraine's Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov and several high-ranking officials but not Zelensky.
Russian negotiator Vladimir Medinsky said Russia wants to come to an agreement that serves both parties.
The Ukrainian delegation invited Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, the owner of the Chelsea Football Club in the United Kingdom, to help achieve a peaceful resolution, according to the Jerusalem Post.
Zelensky had previously rejected Belarus as a location for a peace meeting, protesting that it was not neutral territory, given that it’s become a launchpad for Russia’s military operations.
“Warsaw, Bratislava, Budapest, Istanbul, Baku — we proposed all that to the Russian side. Any other city would work for us, too, in a country from whose territory rockets are not being fired,” Zelensky said in a video address.
Belarus has officially dropped its non-nuclear status in a referendum to allow the country to host Russian nuclear weapons, opening the door for more military cooperation with Russia if the war escalates, Russian news agencies reported Monday.
As Russia coaxes Belarus into its corner, Zelensky has signaled an interest in expediting Ukraine’s incorporation into the West to help it counter the enemy. Zelensky has requested immediate membership in the European Union under a special procedure.
“Our goal is to be with all Europeans and, most importantly, to be equal. I'm sure that's fair. I am sure we deserved it,” he said in a speech circulated on social media.
Heading into the fifth day of fighting, Russia’s advance has reportedly struggled due to tactical, logistical, and morale problems and the surprise of a resilient Ukrainian defensive, U.S. intelligence has indicated. On Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin placed Russia's nuclear-deterrent forces on high alert in response to the sanctions crackdown from western countries.
Moscow has intensified its air assault on Ukraine, pressing on to Kharviv, the second-largest city, after it failed to capture the capital Kyiv. Russian rocket strikes hit Monday morning in Kharviv, inflicting severe civilian casualties including dozens of deaths and hundreds wounded, the Ukrainian Interior Ministry noted.
“Kharkiv has just been massively fired upon by grads (rockets). Dozens of dead and hundreds of wounded,” Ukrainian interior ministry adviser Anton Herashchenko wrote on Facebook.
Civilians have spent multiple nights in bomb shelters and underground bunkers as air raids sirens have blared around the country, with strikes reported in Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Zaporizhzhia and Chernihiv.
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