Meanwhile, top Indian-American American adviser and key architect of Washington’s punitive economic sanctions against Moscow, Dalip Singh, has had fruitful talks with his Indian counterparts, the White House said on Thursday. In a separate news conference, State Department spokesman Ned Price, responding to a question on the Russian foreign minister’s visit to India, said each country has its own relationship.
Russia announced on Tuesday that it would significantly reduce military operations near Ukraine’s capital and northern city, as outlines of a possible deal to end the peace war emerged in the latest round of talks.
A woman holds a child next to a destroyed bridge during evacuation from the city of Irpin, as Russia continues its assault on Ukraine, outside Kyiv, Ukraine March 28, 2022 | Reuters
Ukraine’s delegation at the conference in Istanbul laid out a framework under which the country would declare itself neutral and its security would be guaranteed by an array of other countries. Moscow’s public response was positive, and talks are expected to resume on Wednesday, which in five weeks has turned into a bloody war that has left thousands dead and nearly 4 million Ukrainians fleeing the country.
Amidst the talks, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin said that Moscow has decided to “fundamentally … conditions to be created.”
The announcement was met with skepticism from the US and others. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia cannot be trusted. Although signs of talks are “positive,” they “cannot quell the detonation of Russian shells,” he said in a video address.
Zelensky said it was Ukrainian troops that forced Russia’s hand, adding that “we must not lower our guard” because the invading forces still had “a great potential to continue attacks against our country.”
