Russia-Ukraine war: Second round of talks to be held on March 2

After the first round of negotiations which took place on Monday and produced no tangible results, the sides had said they would meet again in the coming days.  

The second round of talks between Russia and Ukraine is planned for March 2, news agency Reuters reported on Tuesday, quoting Russia’s TASS who cited a source on the Russian side.

After the first round of negotiations which took place on Monday and produced no tangible results, the sides had said they would meet again in the coming days.

Meanwhile, the first round of high-level talks between Kyiv and Moscow took place at the Ukraine-Belarus border ended with officials heading back to capitals for further consultation, suggesting conflict resolution is not imminent. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the next 24 hours “crucial” for Ukraine.

At talks with Russian counterparts in Belarus, the key issue the Ukrainian delegation raised is immediate ceasefire and withdrawal of Russia's troops from Ukraine, said Volodymyr Zelensky, as per reports.

More than 70 Ukrainian servicemen were killed by a Russian rocket attack and dozens of civilians have died in “barbaric” shelling, Ukrainian authorities said Tuesday, as a huge Russian military convoy approached the capital Kyiv.

On the other hand, Ukraine is in talks with allies on how to support its air defences, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Tuesday when asked about whether NATO should set up a no-fly zone to help the country after Russia’s invasion. “Everything they can help us with now - it's better to help now than find themselves eye to eye with (Russian President Vladimir) Putin later,” Kuleba told an online news conference.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday that Kyiv was recalling ambassadors from fellow ex-Soviet republics Kyrgyzstan and Georgia over their government's stance on Russia's invasion of Ukraine.