Day: February 23, 2022

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday that a meeting planned for Thursday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Geneva has been canceled following Moscow’s recognition of two breakaway regions in Ukraine.

“Now that we see the invasion is beginning and Russia has made clear its wholesale rejection of diplomacy, it does not make sense to go forward with that meeting at this time,” Blinken said during a joint press conference with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba at the State Department.

Blinken said he sent Lavrov a letter informing him about the cancelation.

“The United States and I personally remain committed to diplomacy if Russia is prepared to take demonstrable steps to provide the international community with any degree of confidence that it is serious about de-escalating and finding a diplomatic solution.

“We will proceed in coordination with our allies and partners based on Russia’s actions and the facts on the ground,” he added.

Blinken and Lavrov were scheduled to meet provided that Russia did not further invade Ukraine, but in a speech Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin recognized Ukraine’s breakaway regions of Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine as independent states.

Blinken called Putin’s speech “deeply disturbing,” saying that “his statements today made clear to the world how he views Ukraine, not as a sovereign nation with the right to territorial integrity and independence, but rather as a creation of Russia, and therefore subordinate to Russia.”

Kuleba, for his part, said Ukraine “strongly” believes that the time for imposing sanctions on Russia and its leadership is now, to prevent a further invasion.

“The world must respond with all its economic might to punish Russia for the crimes it has already committed and ahead of the crimes it plans to commit. Hit Russia’s economy now, and hit it hard,” he said.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Anadolu Agency is here with a rundown of the latest developments on the coronavirus pandemic and other news in Turkiye and around the world.

‘Turkiye against every move that would target Ukraine’s territorial integrity’

Ankara is against every move that would target Ukraine’s territorial integrity, Turkiye’s president told his Ukrainian counterpart in a phone call Tuesday.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Volodymyr Zelenskyy discussed Russia’s recent decision to recognize Ukraine’s breakaway regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, which Turkiye has called “unacceptable.”

Zelenskyy expressed gratitude to Erdogan for backing Ukraine “on the latest provocative decisions” of Russia, he said on Twitter about the meeting.

Meanwhile, Turkiye’s Communications Directorate said in a statement that Erdogan will attend the NATO leaders’ summit via video conference.

Erdogan’s visit to Guinea-Bissau, the third stop of his African tour, was postponed to a later date.

The Turkish president is in Senegal for the second stop of his official visit to Africa.

On Tuesday, Turkiye reported 86,070 new coronavirus cases.

According to a chart shared by the Health Ministry, 271 people lost their lives and 94,402 others recovered from the disease over the past day, while 463,335 virus tests were conducted nationwide in the past 24 hours.

Other developments worldwide

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday that a meeting planned for Thursday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Geneva has been canceled following Moscow’s recognition of two breakaway regions in Ukraine.

“Now that we see the invasion is beginning and Russia has made clear its wholesale rejection of diplomacy, it does not make sense to go forward with that meeting at this time,” Blinken said during a joint press conference with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba at the State Department.

Blinken said he sent Lavrov a letter informing him about the cancelation.

EU foreign ministers reached an agreement Tuesday to impose sanctions on Russia over it violating the territorial integrity of neighboring Ukraine.

“Today, we have agreed that the 351 members of the Russian State Duma who voted for these violations of international law and the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine will be listed in our sanctions list,” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told a news conference following an extraordinary meeting of EU foreign ministers.

The bloc will also impose sanctions on 27 people and entities that are responsible for undermining or threatening Ukraine’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence, he said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that the Minsk Agreements on the Ukrainian settlement ceased to exist when Russia recognized Ukraine’s breakaway regions of Donetsk and Luhansk as independent states.

Speaking at a news conference in Moscow, Putin said Russia had struggled for eight years for the implementation of the accord while the Ukrainian authorities had stalled them.

In Ukraine, despite fresh tensions that climbed dramatically in its eastern Donbas region since last week, people cling to life in the town of Schastye in the Luhansk region as shelling incidents continue every other moment.

Tatyana, 70, a resident of the government-held town, told Anadolu Agency that lots of people have left.

“They either left or died. It’s terrible! The town is empty,” she said.

Source: Anadolu Agency

New Zealand’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday summoned the Russian envoy to Wellington and conveyed its strong condemnation of Moscow’s recognition of two breakaway regions of Ukraine as independent states.

In a statement, Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta said recent actions by Moscow point toward an imminent invasion of Ukraine’s territory.

“We repeat our call for Russia to act consistently with its international obligations, and return to diplomatic negotiations as a pathway to resolve this conflict,” said Mahuta.

“We have consistently expressed our strong support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, and international diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the crisis to find a peaceful solution.

“A military invasion is an act of aggression, and a violation of one of the most basic tenets of international law. New Zealand is ready to take further measures,” she added.

Mahuta said that her country is also prepared to impose travel and export bans, and diplomatic measures in line with other partners.

She warned that Moscow’s actions could have far-reaching and serious humanitarian, security and economic implications for the region and globally.

“We are very clear: any act of Russian aggression in Ukraine poses a direct threat to global peace and security, and would represent a further violation of international law,” she said.

On Monday, Putin ordered troops into Luhansk and Donetsk region of Ukraine reportedly for “peacekeeping” purposes.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The Ukrainian president on Tuesday signed a decree calling military reservists to duty in “special periods.”

Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video message that there is no need for a mobilization right now.

Noting that it is necessary to reinforce the army, he said this is why he signed the decree on calling reservists to duty.

The law approved last November allows calling reservists into the army without declaring mobilization during “special periods.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday the Minsk Agreement on the Ukrainian settlement ceased to exist when Russia recognized Ukraine’s breakaway regions of Donetsk and Luhansk as independent states.

Speaking at a news conference in Moscow, Putin said Russia had struggled for eight years for the implementation of the accord while the Ukrainian authorities had stalled them.

The US, with its European allies, has said Russia is setting the stage to invade Ukraine after having amassed over 100,000 troops and heavy equipment in and around its neighbor.

Russia has denied it is preparing to invade and instead accuses Western countries of undermining its security through NATO’s expansion towards its borders.

In 2014, Moscow began to support separatist forces in eastern Ukraine against the central government, a policy that it has maintained for the past seven years. The conflict has taken more than 13,000 lives, according to the UN.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Ukrainian officials on Wednesday called on the country’s citizens to leave Russia “immediately,” saying a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine could reduce its ability to provide consular services.

The advisory was issued “due to increased Russian aggression against Ukraine which, among other things, may lead to a significant restriction on the ability to provide consular assistance” to Ukrainians in Russia, the country’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry asked Ukrainian citizens to refrain from traveling to the Russian Federation and those currently there to leave “immediately.”

“We emphasize that ignoring these recommendations will significantly complicate ensuring proper protection of Ukrainian citizens in the Russian Federation,” it added.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday announced that it was recognizing two eastern Ukrainian breakaway regions as “independent” states, along with sending in Russian forces to “maintain peace” there.

The announcements drew widespread global condemnation as violations of the UN Charter and international law, with Western countries announcing new sanctions on Russia.

In 2014, after invading Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, Moscow began to support separatist forces in eastern Ukraine against the central government, a policy that it has maintained for the past seven years. The conflict has taken more than 13,000 lives, according to the UN.

Putin’s latest moves follow Russia amassing some 100,000 troops and heavy equipment in and around its neighbor, with the US and Western countries accusing it of setting the stage for an invasion.

Russia has denied it is preparing an invasion and instead claims Western countries undermined its security through NATO’s expansion towards its borders.

Source: Anadolu Agency