While the Russian troops are expanding their offensive in Ukraine, representatives of both countries want to continue negotiations today.
However, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy is pushing for talks at the highest level. Russian and Ukrainian representatives want to continue negotiations today on a possible solution to the war against Ukraine. The talks are to be held online in a video conference. According to information from Kyiv, the talks are scheduled to start at 8.30 a.m. Central European Time. Recently there had been at least tentative signs of a possible rapprochement. An adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the Russian side was now negotiating more constructively. Before the negotiations began, Selenskyy himself had urged his country’s delegation to focus primarily on direct talks between him and Russian President Vladimir Putin. “Our delegation has a clear task – to do everything to make a meeting of the presidents possible,” Zelenskyy said in a video message. In response, the Kremlin said it would not refuse such a meeting if “specific questions” were at stake.
Demand for airspace closure
The President again called on the West to close airspace over Ukraine. “If you don’t do that, it’s only a matter of time before Russian missiles fall on your areas,” he said in a video address. NATO opposes a no-fly zone to avoid being drawn into direct conflict with Russia. Ukraine is going through the toughest test in its history, Zelensky said.
Killed in attacks in Kyiv
The Russian military is expanding its offensive in Ukraine. According to the state broadcaster Ukrainian TV, one person was killed and three others injured in Kyiv. A house was hit by a grenade. The Interior Ministry spoke of two dead and three injured who were taken to a hospital. According to the city administration, Russian troops are also said to have fired on the Antonov aircraft plant. According to the Russian General Staff, Russian troops are currently trying to establish themselves at locations they have previously occupied, to secure supplies and to regroup. The general staff expects further attacks in the near future, including on the cities of Kharkiv, Sumy and the Kiev suburb of Brovari, according to a statement published on Facebook.
First air raid near Polish border
On Sunday, Russia also carried out airstrikes near the border with Poland for the first time. The target was a military base near the city of Lviv. According to Ukrainian sources, at least 35 people were killed and 134 injured. Russia fired around 30 rockets at the base in Yavoriv, the regional military administration said.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said the attack was aimed at a training center near the Polish border, which also trains blue helmets for peacekeeping missions and where NATO trainers worked until shortly before the war. “This is a new terrorist attack on peace and security near the EU-NATO border,” Reznikov tweeted. According to Moscow, scores of foreign fighters have been killed. The Russian armed forces “destroyed up to 180 foreign mercenaries” and a large number of weapons supplied from abroad, the Defense Ministry in Moscow said, according to the Tass agency. “The extermination of foreign mercenaries who entered Ukraine continues,” said ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov.
Kyiv still under fire
The fighting around the Ukrainian capital Kyiv also continued on Sunday, according to the Ukrainian army. Accordingly, there were fierce battles in Irpin and further wisely in Makariv. The situation is similar in other villages. Kyiv is preparing for a possible total blockade. Stocks of food have been stockpiled to supply two million Kievans for two weeks, said the deputy head of the city administration, Valentyn Mondryivskyi.
