Ukraine Update: Negotiators Set for Face-to-Face Talks This Week
Read all the latest updates and developments from the Ukraine crisis here..
(Bloomberg) --
Ukrainian and Russian negotiating teams plan to meet in Turkey this week with the conflict in its second month and big differences remaining on terms for a potential cease-fire deal.
Heavy explosions were heard in several Ukrainian cities overnight, including the western city of Lutsk, where Russian rockets hit an oil facility, according to regional governor Yuriy Pohulyayko. It follows other strikes in western areas on the weekend targeting fuel stores.
The White House continues the effort to temper President Joe Biden’s remarks where he called for the removal of Vladimir Putin, insisting the U.S. isn’t seeking regime change in Moscow. French President Emmanuel Macron warned against an escalation of “words or actions,” a day after Biden said the Russian president “cannot remain in power.”
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Key Developments
All times CET:
EU Meeting Over Widening Refugee Crisis (7:25 a.m.)
Europe is racing to absorb the more than 3.4 million refugees that have fled Ukraine, with many more on their way. European Union justice and home affairs ministers are in Brussels for a meeting to determine how much more funding is needed and to help facilitate travel of refugees to other nations in the bloc.
The EU has already expedited 3.4 billion euros for front-line states, particularly Poland. Another topic is how to handle Ukrainian refugees transiting through Moldova.
Stocks Fall; Crude Oil Slides (6:19 a.m.)
S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 contracts dipped and those for Europe climbed as investors monitored Russia’s war in Ukraine, now in its second month. Asian shares were mixed, with a technology rally bolstering Hong Kong.
China’s mobility curbs to stem a Covid outbreak weighed on crude oil. West Texas Intermediate slid to around $110 a barrel as a Covid-linked lockdown in Shanghai stirred concerns that China’s virus resurgence imperils oil demand.
Support for Japan’s PM Rises With Ukraine Policies Popular (2:51 a.m.)
Support for Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida jumped six percentage points from last month to 61% in a new poll, with about two-thirds of respondents saying they approved of his government’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Japan has acted with unprecedented speed to clamp down on Russia, freezing the assets of individuals and entities and stripping the country of its most-favored nation trade status. In response, Russia halted negotiations on a peace treaty to bring a formal end to World War II.
White House Aide Tests Positive for Covid (2: 45 a.m.)
Karine Jean-Pierre, a deputy press secretary, said she tested positive on Sunday after returning from Biden’s trip to Europe. Jean-Pierre said she was not considered a close contact of Biden despite participating in a “socially distanced meeting” on Saturday with the president.
Biden: I’m Not Seeking Regime Change (1 a.m.)
It comes after his remark during a speech in Europe that Putin “cannot remain in power.” That unscripted comment prompted concern from France, the U.K. and Republican lawmakers, who warned against escalating tension with Russia over the war in Ukraine.
Back in Washington on Sunday, a reporter asked Biden after a church visit whether the U.S. president wanted Putin removed and was calling for regime change. “No,” he replied.
Scholz Says NATO Doesn’t Want Regime Change (12:14 p.m.)
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said NATO allies aren’t pursuing regime change in Russia. Asked whether Biden’s comment that Vladimir Putin “cannot remain in power” was a mistake, Scholz replied: “As far as I’m concerned, he said what he said.”
“That’s not the goal of NATO, and also not of the U.S. president,” Scholz said in an interview with German broadcaster ARD. “We both agree that regime change cannot be the goal of our policies.”
Ukraine Says Mariupol Evacuations Continue (10:04 p.m.)
More than 1,000 people left the Russian-besieged port city of Mariupol and the town of Rubizhne in the eastern region of Luhansk on Sunday via so-called humanitarian corridors, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said in a video statement. Ukrainian authorities expect to continue evacuations from devastated Mariupol on Monday and to start a corridors in the northeastern Sumy region.
Russia-Occupied Southern Cities Protest Again (9:55 p.m.)
Ukrainians again took to the streets on Sunday in the southern cities of Kherson and Kakhovka to protest Russia’s occupation, according to TV reports and social media. Russian troops sought to disperse the crowds -- where people shouted they were part of Ukraine -- using smoke bombs.
Protests have been a constant in areas of Ukraine where Russian troops have control, even as Moscow demands locals cooperate with councils it seeks to put into power. In some places Russia has said it plans to hold referendums on breaking away from Ukraine.
Ukraine Seeks Russia Troop Withdrawal to Pre-War Posts (9:30 p.m.)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he wants Russia to move its forces to “compromise territories” he said they occupied before the war, even if that means some remain in the country.
The interview with several non-state Russia media outlets didn’t go into specifics. While Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 from Ukraine, it always insisted there were no troops in the rest of the country. That’s even as Ukraine claimed Moscow had a military presence in Russia-backed separatist areas of Donbas in the east.
“I understand that forcing Russia to liberate this territory completely is impossible as it would lead to WWIII,” Zelenskiy said. He reiterated that he’s open to discussing neutrality for Ukraine and that any deal affecting the country’s constitution would have to be approved by referendum, which couldn’t happen with Russian troops in the country.
Russian Tycoon Deripaska Calls Conflict ‘Insanity’ (8:02 p.m. CET)
Sanctioned Russian tycoon Oleg Deripaska offered an unusual public criticism of the Ukraine conflict in a Telegram post Sunday that also accused U.S. President Joe Biden of fueling tensions with his speech in Poland.
“It always seemed to me that this particular armed conflict -- this insanity (that we will be ashamed of before our descendants for a long time yet) -- could have been ended three weeks ago through reasonable negotiations,” Deripaska wrote. “But now there’s some kind of hellish ideological mobilization underway on all sides,” he added, saying that people now seem ready to “fight for several years.”
Regulator Tells Russian Media Not to Publish Zelenskiy Interview (6:25 p.m.)
Russia’s main media regulator threatened local outlets with regulatory probes if they published a new interview with Zelenskiy. Shortly after the warning, Zelenskiy posted a video of the entire conversation to his Telegram channel.
Roskomnadzor, as the agency is known, didn’t explain on what grounds it was seeking to block the publication, but Russian authorities have steadily tightened controls over coverage related to the invasion. Several independent outlets, including Meduza, TV Rain, Novaya Gazeta and Kommersant, had announced plans to release the interview.
Kharkiv Nuclear Research Facility Hit by Shelling (6:40 p.m.)
Russian shelling caused additional damage to a nuclear research facility in Kharkiv, although on-site radiation levels remain within standard limits.
Saturday’s attack seriously damaged thermal insulation lining of the facility’s “Neutron Source” building, while also causing partial shedding of lining materials in the installation’s experimental hall, the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate of Ukraine said on its website.
Ongoing shelling risks more damage and could lead to radiation contamination of surrounding areas, according to the statement. The installation has been in long-term shutdown mode since Feb. 24.
Separatist Says No Immediate Plans for Vote to Join Russia (6:30 p.m.)
A separatist leader backed off an earlier statement that his region may hold a vote soon to become part of Russia, saying no such preparations are under way and that any referendum would only come after fighting ends, Tass reported.
Leonid Pasechnik, leader of the Russian-backed Luhansk People’s Republic in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas, said earlier comments were his “personal, private opinion.” “In the future, having gotten their freedom, the residents of our republics will have the absolute right to determine their future,” he said.
Pasechnik’s earlier statement about an imminent vote drew denunciations from officials in Kyiv, who called it an illegitimate step aimed at partitioning Ukraine. In Moscow, a senior Russian legislator was also cool to the idea, saying now isn’t the time for a vote, Tass reported.
Ukraine Announces Talks With Russia in Turkey (5:18 p.m.)
Ukrainian and Russian delegations will meet in Turkey for talks March 28-30, Ukrainian negotiator David Arakhamiya said on Facebook.
Russia’s chief negotiator, Vladimir Medinsky, offered slightly different information in a Telegram post. He said the sides had agreed to hold in-person talks March 29-30 after the latest round was conducted via video link. He didn’t specify the location of the planned session.
Turkey is one of several countries whose government has looked to help mediate talks.
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