Russia-Ukraine ‘peace’ talks underway on Belarus border, ‘hope to bring about an end to this situation’

“We hope that they bring about an end to this situation, restore peace in Donbass and enable all people in Ukraine to return to peaceful life,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia said.

Team Newsable

Belarus, First Published Mar 3, 2022, 8:38 PM IST | Last Updated Mar 3, 2022, 8:38 PM IST

The Ukrainian delegation of negotiators has arrived by helicopter for talks with the Russian side in Belarus, Russian state news agency TASS said on Thursday, citing its reporter on the ground.

Direct talks between Russian and Ukrainian representatives are underway on Belarusian territory, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia. “We hope that they bring about an end to this situation, restore peace in Donbass and enable all people in Ukraine to return to peaceful life,” it added.

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Thursday said that Moscow is ready for talks to end the fighting in Ukraine but will continue to press its effort to destroy Ukraine’s military infrastructure. Lavrov said that the Russian delegation submitted its demands to Ukrainian negotiators earlier this week and is now waiting for Kyiv’s response in talks set for Thursday. He added that the West has continuously armed Ukraine, trained its troops and built-up bases there to turn Ukraine into a bulwark against Russia.

Ahead of the ‘peace talks’, President Vladimir Putin said that any attempts by Kyiv to delay negotiations would result in Moscow adding more items to its list of demands, reported Reuters. The Russian President also told his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron that the goals of Russia’s operation in Ukraine - its demilitarisation and neutral status - will be achieved in any case, the Kremlin said.

Meanwhile, the Russian military has taken the Ukrainian city of Kherson and continues to bomb Kyiv, Sumy, and other cities. Russian shelling and attacks on civilian populations killed 34 civilians in Ukraine’s eastern Kharkiv region in the past 24 hours between March 2-3, the emergency services said on Thursday.

Separately, the governor of the Ukraine-controlled eastern Donetsk region said the port city of Mariupol, one of the first targets of the Russian invasion, was without electricity or water supplies.

On the other hand, India has stepped up its efforts to evacuate its nationals from several Ukrainian cities.