‘Massive’ Russian strikes on Ukraine hit negotiation table as well as people, Kyiv says – Europe live | Europe
Ukraine says Russia’s attacks hit ‘negotiating table’
Ukraine’s foreign minister accused Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday of “cynically” ordering a massive missile strike while delegations from Ukraine, Russia and the United States were in Abu Dhabi for Washington-brokered peace talks.
Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote to
Russia launched air strikes on Ukraine’s two largest cities, Kiev and Kharkiv, early Saturday; One person was killed and at least 23 people were injured.
He added: “Peace efforts? Trilateral meeting in the UAE? Diplomacy? For the Ukrainians, this was another night of Russian terror.”
Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 375 unmanned aerial vehicles and 21 missiles in the attacks, which once again targeted energy infrastructure and cut off electricity and heat in much of the capital.
important events
Peter Beaumont
One wall of the Benedikt cafe in the Ukrainian port city of Odessa is covered with a giant map of countries and regions cut from lacquered wooden pieces, with Greenland on top.
Garson does not follow the news about the Greenland crisis and Donald Trump’s desire to annex Danish territory. But the repercussions of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s imperialist land grab in the waiter’s own country are clear to him. “They’re crazy. Both of them.”
For those paying more attention to Ukraine during Russian air strikes, freezing temperatures and power outages, the correspondence is not only obvious but often alarming; Even though Trump is, for now, out of saber-rattling and trying to rationalize what he sees as a vague and inconsistent agreement with NATO for the region.
“There are three main problems,” said Oleksandr Merezhko, chairman of the Ukrainian parliament’s committee responsible for foreign policy and inter-parliamentary relations and an expert on international law.
“Firstly, it distracts us from the situation we are in right now. Any distraction between our European partners weakens the coalition that supports us. It weakens NATO and weakens transatlantic solidarity.”
There is also the question of how Trump’s demands and actions undermine the post-World War II international rules-based order.
“As an international lawyer, one of the fundamental principles is that territorial integrity is sacred. We support Denmark’s territorial integrity. What I am afraid of is this: [that the Greenland issue plays into] Putin’s idea of dividing the world into spheres of influence.”
Russia’s massive overnight attack on Ukraine’s energy facilities shows that air defense agreements made with US President Donald Trump in Davos this week must be “fully implemented”, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Saturday.
Zelenskyy and Trump met at the World Economic Forum on Thursday to discuss air defense support for Ukraine, but neither leader later said what was agreed upon.
Ukraine says Russia’s attacks hit ‘negotiating table’
Ukraine’s foreign minister accused Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday of “cynically” ordering a massive missile strike while delegations from Ukraine, Russia and the United States were in Abu Dhabi for Washington-brokered peace talks.
Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote to
Russia launched air strikes on Ukraine’s two largest cities, Kiev and Kharkiv, early Saturday; One person was killed and at least 23 people were injured.
He added: “Peace efforts? Trilateral meeting in the UAE? Diplomacy? For the Ukrainians, this was another night of Russian terror.”
Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 375 unmanned aerial vehicles and 21 missiles in the attacks, which once again targeted energy infrastructure and cut off electricity and heat in much of the capital.
Russian attacks on Ukraine kill one person and injure dozens ahead of second day of peace talks
Hello and welcome to the Europe live blog. My name is Tom Ambrose and I will bring you the latest news.
We start with this news Russian attacks on Ukraine on Saturday killed at least one person and injured 23, as negotiators from Ukraine, Russia and the United States were expected to meet in Abu Dhabi for a second day of talks aimed at ending Russia’s nearly four-year full-scale occupation..
Timur Tkachenko, head of the Kiev City Military Administration, said that one person was killed and four people were injured in Russia’s drone attacks on Ukraine’s capital Kiev.
Kharkiv mayor Ihor Terekhov said that 19 people were injured in drone attacks in Ukraine’s second largest city, Kharkiv.
The attacks came as envoys were expected to meet in the United Arab Emirates for the second day of talks on Saturday. According to the AP report, the talks are the first known instance of Trump administration officials sitting at the table with both countries.
The UAE foreign ministry said the talks were part of efforts to “promote dialogue and identify political solutions to the crisis”. The White House described the first day Friday as productive.
There has been a flurry of diplomatic activity from Switzerland to the Kremlin in recent days, despite serious obstacles between both sides.
While Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Thursday in Davos, Switzerland, that a possible peace deal was “almost ready”, some sensitive sticking points – especially those related to territorial issues – remain unresolved.
Just hours before the trilateral talks began, Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the Ukraine deal with U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner during marathon talks that lasted throughout the night.
The Kremlin insists that to reach a peace deal, Kiev must withdraw its troops from the eastern regions that Russia has illegally annexed but has not fully captured.
You can read my colleague Peter Beaumont’s report from Kiev here:
