Foreign Ministers Of Russia, Ukraine To Meet In Turkey Today, In A First Since Invasion

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is playing a mediator between the two nations, is hoping the talks can avert tragedy and agree on a ceasefire.

New Delhi: In the first high-level talks since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, the foreign ministers of the two countries will meet face-to-face Thursday in southern Turkey.

Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is playing a mediator between the two nations, is hoping that the talks can avert tragedy and make the two sides agree on a ceasefire, news agency AP reported.

However, analysts expect the lowest chances of a breakthrough at the meeting in Antalya between Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba.

Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba said the success of the talks would depend on "what instructions and directives Lavrov is under" from the Kremlin at the discussions. "I am not pinning any great hopes on them but we will try and get the most out of" the talks with effective preparation," he said.

Turkey is a traditional ally of Ukraine and has supplied the country with Bayraktar drones, made by a firm whose technology director is Erdogan's own son-in-law, which Kyiv has deployed in the conflict. But it is seeking to maintain good relations with Russia, on which Turkey depends heavily for gas imports and tourism revenues.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict: The Latest

At least 35,000 civilians were evacuated from besieged Ukrainian cities on Wednesday, President Volodymyr Zelensky said, according to AFP report.

In a video address on Wednesday, the Ukrainian leader said three humanitarian corridors had allowed residents to leave the cities of Sumy, Enerhodar and areas around Kyiv.

Zelenskyy spoke with UK PM Boris Johnson and discussed increasing sanctions against Russia. He tweeted, “Discussed increasing sanctions pressure on Russia, further support for Ukraine in fighting the aggressor, including defence assistance. Appreciate the UK’s leadership in countering the crime Russia is committing on Ukrainian land." 

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Intending to impose further sanctions against Moscow, British foreign secretary Liz Truss sought to convince fellow members of the G7 — Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States — to ban oil imports from Russia. US President Joe Biden has already announced an immediate ban on oil and energy imports from Russia.

There were talks between US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and his Ukrainian counterpart Oleksii Reznikov over the continued provision of defensive security assistance to Ukraine's military.

Meanwhile, the United States has warned that Russia is likely to use chemical weapons against Ukraine. White House press secretary Jen Psaki made this claim while describing Russia’s allegations against the US of housing biological weapons in the Ukrainian territory as ‘false’ and ‘preposterous.’

(with agency inputs)