Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia on Friday of intentionally sabotaging peace efforts forward of proposed talks in Istanbul, warning that Moscow’s actions sign it has “no intention” of ending the battle.
After assembly Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Kyiv, Zelenskyy praised Ankara and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for backing Ukraine’s push for a “just and lasting peace.” He credited Turkish mediation for a earlier prisoner swap that secured the discharge of 1,000 Ukrainian captives.
“The return of all Ukrainians held by Russia remains one of our top priorities,” Zelenskyy stated, whereas blasting Moscow for ignoring ceasefire appeals and failing to submit a promised memorandum outlining its peace phrases.
“Russia continues its killings and has offered no document, neither to us nor to Türkiye, since the 1,000-for-1,000 exchange,” he stated. “For talks to matter, we need clarity on the agenda and solid preparation.”
A brand new spherical of negotiations is tentatively scheduled for June 2 in Istanbul, constructing on a May 16 settlement to alternate prisoners and draft peace frameworks.
Ukraine insists the draft be shared earlier than the assembly; Russia says it can current the doc through the talks.
Meanwhile, the battle’s toll worsened Saturday.
Russian missile and drone strikes killed not less than two individuals, together with a 9-year-old lady, and wounded others throughout Ukraine. Kyiv’s air drive stated Russia launched 109 drones and 5 missiles in a single day; 42 drones and three missiles had been intercepted, and one other 30 drones crashed with out influence.
Zaporizhzhia Gov. Ivan Fedorov stated the lady was killed in Dolynka, a front-line village, the place a blast flattened one home and broken a number of others. In Kherson, Gov. Oleksandr Prokudin reported a person was killed by Russian shelling.
Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed new territorial positive aspects, together with the villages of Novopil in Donetsk and Vodolahy in northern Sumy. Ukrainian authorities ordered obligatory evacuations in 11 extra Sumy settlements, elevating the entire to 213 as Russia presses its offensive close to the border.
Zelenskyy stated 50,000 Russian troops have amassed close to Sumy, aiming to carve out a buffer zone. Ukraine’s military chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi, stated Russian forces are focusing their principal push on Pokrovsk, Toretsk, Lyman, and the Sumy border.
Syrskyi additionally claimed Ukrainian troops nonetheless maintain positions in Russia’s Kursk area – an announcement Moscow denies, insisting it expelled Ukrainian forces in April after a shock incursion final 12 months.
“The enemy is holding its best units near Kursk, which it had planned to use in the east,” Syrskyi stated.
Inside Russia, Ukrainian drone strikes hit civilian areas. Acting Gov. Alexander Khinshtein stated 14 individuals, together with 4 youngsters, had been injured in condo buildings within the Kursk area’s Rylsk city and Artakovo village.
Back in Kyiv, presidential adviser Andrii Yermak stated Ukraine is prepared for Monday’s Istanbul talks however careworn Russia should first present the lacking memorandum.
“The Russians are withholding it for no clear reason,” Zelenskyy echoed. “This lack of clarity undermines diplomacy.”
Russia has but to reply.
Source: www.dailysabah.com