By Janet Ekstract
ISTANBUL- Talks between Ukrainian and Russian officials continue via video link today as the fourth round of talks restarted on Monday. A senior Russian lawmaker Leonid Slutsky told Russian Interfax news agency that delegations from both sides have made progress in talks that could lead to a ceasefire. Slutsky commented: “According to my personal expectations, this progress can elevate in a few coming days into a mutual position of both delegations and signing of documents,” The lawmaker was not forthcoming on what documents might be signed. Sources said that a number of ideas were suggested that could lead to a ceasefire. Chief negotiator and chief of staff for Ukraine’s President Zelensky, Mykailo Podolyak wrote on Telegram that Russia advanced from making ultimatums to listening carefully. Podolyak said: “There is a dialogue.”
Meanwhile, on Monday, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan warned that any inadvertent Russian fire onto NATO territory could ignite a response by the military alliance. Sullivan cited the past few days where bombs hit targets that are encroaching on Ukraine’s border with Poland, a NATO member. Sullivan told CBS’s “Face the Nation”: “All I will say is if Russia attacks, fires upon, takes a shot at NATO territory, the NATO alliance would respond to that.”
In new developments, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss began discussing additional sanctions on Russia, early on Monday. Kuleba said on Twitter: “Pressure must increase until Russia ceases its meaningless aggression and stops barbaric war crimes.” Kuleba lauded the UK for “stepping up support for Ukraine.” Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote earlier on Twitter: “Regular international talks. With President of the EU Council eucopresident (Charles Michel) we discussed the issue of increasing financial support for Ukraine and sanctions pressure on the aggressor. Special attention was paid to the further negotiation process on Ukraine’s EU membership.”
On Sunday, Ukrainian officials said Ukraine opened ten humanitarian corridors that included some to evacuate people from dangerous locations around Kyiv and six in Ukraine’s eastern region. This included a route into besieged Mariupol with evacuation from Velvka Dymerka to Brovary in the Kyiv region that was successfully completed. So far, almost 125,000 people were moved to safety through the humanitarian corridors Zelensky said via a video statement. He added on Sunday: “Mariupol is a key task today. Our humanitarian convoy is two hours from Mariupol only 80 kilometers.” A convoy with 100,000 tons of food, water and medications was on the way to Mariupol.
