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Russia's President Vladimir Putin says his country will continue its yearlong "special military operation" in Ukraine, and he accused the US-led NATO alliance of fanning the flames.
Russia-Ukraine conflict would have cost world economy $1.6 trillion in 2022, according to a study published by the German Economic Institute.
MOSCOW -- Russia has imposed personal sanctions against 29 media representatives and 20 defense figures of the United Kingdom in a retaliatory move, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.
The media representatives, including journalists working for The Guardian, BBC, and others, and the defense figures, including British Minister for Defence Procurement Jeremy Quin, would be denied entry into Russia.
According to the ministry, the move is a response to personal sanctions introduced by the British government against leading Russian journalists and heads of Russian defense companies.
"The British journalists included in the list are involved in the deliberate dissemination of false and one-sided information about Russia and events in Ukraine and Donbass," the ministry said, adding that with their biased assessments, they also contribute to fueling Russophobia in British society.
The 20 individuals "linked to the UK defense industry were involved in making decisions on the supply of weapons to Ukraine, which are used by local punishers and Nazi formations to kill civilians and destroy civilian infrastructure," the ministry said.
STOCKHOLM - Contrary to previous assertions that the accession of Finland and Sweden to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) would be a quick process, the military alliance's Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, said on Monday that "there is no way to say exactly when" this will happen when visiting Sweden.
While the parliaments of several NATO member states have already approved the two Nordic countries' bid to join the alliance, Turkey has so far not given its green light, citing as concerns the two countries' ties with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and other groups Turkey labels as terrorists.
Ankara has also voiced its dissatisfaction with Sweden's arms embargo on Turkey and despite hopes that these issues would be resolved ahead of the NATO summit in Madrid at the end of the month, Stoltenberg on Monday said that "the Madrid summit was never a deadline."
"We are working to find the solution as soon as possible. But when many countries or several countries are involved, there is no way to say exactly when these countries are going to be able to agree," he said.
During his meeting with Finland's President Sauli Niinisto on Sunday, Stoltenberg called Turkey's concerns "legitimate." This was echoed by Sweden's Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson.
"We take the Turkish concerns very seriously and other issues and not at least there are security concerns when it comes to the fight against terrorism," Andersson said in a joint press conference with Stoltenberg on Monday at the prime minister's official summer residence Harpsund some 120 kilometers west of Stockholm.
The NATO secretary general said that he was hopeful that the latest signals from Sweden and Finland would bring them one step closer to becoming members of the military alliance.
"We're working hard and actively on these issues in close consultation with Stockholm, with Helsinki, and of course our NATO ally Turkey. And in that context, those signals from Sweden on terrorism and arms exports are important," Stoltenberg said.
Von der Leyen: 'We want to support Ukraine in its European journey'
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says the commission will provide a clear response this week to Ukraine over its quest to join the European Union.
It was the first time that an EU leader has given a time frame for the issue, a controversial one among the 27 member states.
In a surprise visit to Kyiv on Saturday, von der Leyen met with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky and Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal. It was her second visit to Ukraine since the Russia-Ukraine conflict broke out on Feb 24. Her previous visit was on April 8.
"We want to support Ukraine in its European journey," she said in a joint news conference with Zelensky.
"The discussion today will enable us to finalize our assessment by the end of next week."
"The path is known," she said. "It is a merit-based path forward. It is a path where, I must say, I really appreciate the enormous efforts and determination of Ukraine in this process."
The commission has been "working day and night on this assessment", she said, referring to a promise she made during her visit in April about evaluating Ukraine's application.
Ukraine's EU membership would be positive for Europe, Zelensky said. He also called for a new round of "even stronger" EU sanctions against Russia.
Ukraine is demanding a concrete "legal commitment" by the end of this month to obtain official candidate status for its entry into the EU.
For the issue to go ahead, the 27 EU member states must agree unanimously. While Poland and the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have called for Ukraine's speedy accession, several other member states－such as Germany, France, the Netherlands and Denmark－have voiced reservations on any fast-tracking.
Von der Leyen also hinted that much remains to be done for Ukraine to join the bloc.
"You have done a lot in strengthening the rule of law, but there still need to be reforms implemented, to fight corruption for example, or to modernize this well-functioning administration, to help attract investors."
There are expectations that Ukraine's candidacy will be approved at an EU leaders summit in June, with some strict conditions attached.
Even if Ukraine is given candidate status, the road to membership is usually very long.
"We all know perfectly well that the process to allow (Ukraine) to join would take several years, indeed probably several decades," French President Emmanuel Macron told the European Parliament in Strasbourg last month.
In a tweet on Saturday, Shmyhal, the Ukrainian prime minister, said he and von der Leyen discussed Ukraine's recovery plan developing in line with EU principles.
On Sunday, the German newspaper Bild am Sonntag reported that Chancellor Olaf Scholz plans to visit Kyiv with Macron and Italy's Prime Minister Mario Draghi.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a bill into law on Russian noncompliance with the rulings of the European Court of Human Rights, the Kremlin said on Saturday.
In accordance with the new law, Russia will not abide by the court's rulings adopted after March 15, when the country announced its exit from the Council of Europe.
In addition, compensations assessed by the court will be made only in roubles and transferred only to accounts in Russian banks.
The bill was approved on Wednesday by the Federation Council, or the upper house of Russian parliament, on Wednesday.
On the business front, the first 15 restaurants formerly owned by McDonald's Corp will reopen in Moscow on Sunday under new ownership and a new name, "Vkusno & tochka", which means "Tasty & that's it", the company said.
Xinhua and agencies contributed to this story.
KYIV -- Twenty-two people were injured in a rocket attack on the Ukrainian city of Chortkiv in the country's western Ternopil region on Saturday, the government-run Ukrinform news agency reported.
Four rockets, presumably fired from the Black Sea, hit Chortkiv at about 9:46 pm local time (1846 GMT) on Saturday, according to Volodymyr Trush, head of the Ternopil regional military administration.
A military facility was partially destroyed in the attack, while four apartment blocks were damaged, Trush told reporters, adding that most of the injured were in stable condition.
KYIV -- European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said here Saturday that the commission will finalize the assessment on granting Ukraine European Union (EU) candidate status by the end of next week, the Ukrinform news agency reported.
"The European Commission is currently preparing its recommendations -- the so-called conclusion for EU member states. We have been working on this assessment day and night," von der Leyen said at the joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. "Our discussions will allow us to conclude this work by the end of next week."
On Feb. 28, Zelensky signed an official appeal to the EU asking for the accession of Ukraine via a new special procedure.
Von der Leyen gave the EU membership questionnaire to Zelensky during her visit to Kyiv in April. The first part of the document was submitted to the EU on April 18, while the second was delivered on May 9.
However, observers say even with candidate status, it may take years, if not decades, for Ukraine to obtain EU membership.
KYIV -- British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace has pledged to continue providing military aid for Kiev while meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart here, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said Saturday.
During the talks held on Friday, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov urged more defensive aid from Britain, saying that "we need more heavy weapons to continue the struggle."
Wallace said Britain's support for Ukraine will continue, noting that cooperation between the two sides "will be as effective as possible."
Last month, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that the British government will provide 1.3 billion pounds ($1.6 billion) in military aid to Ukraine.
As Russia's special military operation in Ukraine grinds into its fourth month, officials in Kyiv have expressed fears that the specter of "war fatigue" could erode the West's resolve to help them.
The United States and its allies have given billions of dollars in weaponry to Ukraine. Europe has taken in millions of people displaced by the war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has already chafed at Western suggestions that he should accept some sort of compromise, The Associated Press reported. Ukraine, he said, would decide its own terms for peace.
"The fatigue is growing, people want some kind of outcome (that is beneficial) for themselves, and we want (another) outcome for ourselves," he said.
The US was continuing to help Ukraine, with President Joe Biden saying last week that Washington will provide it with advanced weapons that will enable it to more precisely strike key targets on the battlefield. The new military aid package would include the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS.
On Thursday, Konstantin Gavrilov, head of the Russian Delegation to the negotiations on military security and arms control in Vienna, told the Rossiya-24 TV channel that Moscow "particularly put the spotlight on the delivery to Ukraine of long-range howitzers and HIMARS that threaten not only Donbas but Russia as well".
"We have clearly laid out Russia's stance: If the Russian Federation is attacked with these long-range systems, a response against the decision-making centers will be immediate," he said.
According to a report by The Associated Press, Ukraine has depleted its stocks of Soviet and Russian-designed weaponry and is now completely dependent on allies for arms, US military sources say, adding that Kyiv's forces are using, or learning to use, arms wielded by the US and European NATO allies.
But, according to a US official, Washington is not willing to send Kyiv its Grey Eagle tactical drones out of fear they could be used to strike deep inside Russia, a move that could risk pulling Washington into direct conflict with Moscow.
Bucharest meeting
Kyiv has meanwhile appealed for more weapons from the West. The leaders of nine central and eastern European countries were meeting on Friday in Bucharest to plead for a strengthening of the eastern flank of NATO, ahead of a major meeting in Madrid at the end of June.
Russia has repeatedly warned the West against getting involved, with some officials warning of the risk of nuclear war.
In the frontline, intense street battles in the city of Severodonetsk in eastern Ukraine continued to rage on Friday.
Up to 100 Ukrainian soldiers were being killed every day in frontline fighting and as many as 500 wounded, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said.
Russia says the special military operation is meant to "de-Nazify" Ukraine.
In the southern Russian city of Volgograd－which in the Soviet era was known as Stalingrad, and was the scene of the bloodiest battle of World War II－many Russians rally behind the military operation.
"Back then there was fascism, now there is neo-fascism," said local resident Alexander Grachev, 50, referring to Ukraine's authorities.
Zelensky said earlier that Ukrainian forces were "holding on" as the fight could determine the fate of the Donbas region.
On Thursday, he signed two separate decrees imposing sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin and more than 200 Russian officials, including Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
BELGRADE - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and visiting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Friday disagreed on the necessity to impose sanctions on Russia after their discussion on the Ukraine crisis.
The German Chancellor "in a decisive, clear and sharp manner" asked Serbia to join Western sanctions against Russia, and even offered help for the construction of energy capacities, Vucic told a press conference after their meeting here.
"I spoke about our position, and the specific situation which Serbia has around Kosovo and Metohija province," Vucic said, referring to the Serbian southern province which unilaterally declared independence in 2008 after Serbia was heavily bombarded by NATO in 1999.
"As much as you like the integrity of Ukraine -- we love the integrity of Serbia," Vucic said, reminding Russia's support for Serbia's territorial integrity at the UN Security Council, Serbia-Russia traditional friendship, and energy cooperation.
Vucic said that Serbia has a different position when it comes to the necessity to impose sanctions on Russia. "We Serbia remember what sanctions look like and on the other hand we had a different kind of relations with the Russian side for centuries."
Scholz voiced the European Union's (EU) expectation that "all (EU) membership candidates should join those sanctions," repeating Germany's support for Serbia's EU accession.
Scholz's Balkan tour started Friday in Pristina and Belgrade. The next stops include Greece, North Macedonia and Bulgaria.
KYIV -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday signed two separate decrees imposing sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin and more than 200 Russian officials, the presidential press service reported.
The restrictions targeting Putin banned him from carrying out trade operations such as exports and imports, transiting through Ukrainian territory and participating in the privatization of Ukraine's state property.
The sanctions also include asset freezing and prohibition of using Ukrainian radio-frequency resources.
The same restrictive measures will apply to 34 top officials, including Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, according to the decree.
Moreover, the decrees sanctioned 263 higher educational institutions.
Under the restrictive measures, Russian educational establishments cannot conduct cultural, scientific and sports exchanges with their Ukrainian peers.
KYIV - Ukraine saw a successful grain sowing campaign despite the challenges caused by the conflict with Russia, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on Wednesday.
"The government has taken all possible measures to successfully carry out the most difficult sowing campaign in history," Shmyhal said on Telegram.
Ukrainian farmers have planted grain on 75 percent of last year's sowed area, Shmyhal said, adding that the government has provided local grain producers with some $1.3 billion in loans to carry out the sowing campaign.
About 23.5 million tons of grain and oilseeds from last year's harvest remain in Ukraine due to the blockade of seaports, Shmyhal said.
The prime minister said his government plans to set up mobile grain storage to increase the country's grain storage capabilities by 10-15 million tons.
In recent months, supplies of Ukrainian grain to the global market have been affected due to the Russian military's blockade of Ukrainian ports.
In 2021, Ukraine harvested a record crop of grain, legumes and oilseeds totaling more than 106 million tons.
In the first half of the current market year, which runs from July 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022, Ukraine exported some 10 billion dollars worth of crops and oilseeds, up 56 percent annually, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported in late May, citing data from the Ukrainian Agribusiness Club.
UNITED NATIONS - The world is facing a cost-of-living crisis unseen in at least a generation, partly due to the Ukraine conflict, said a UN report on Wednesday.
"The largest cost-of-living crisis of the 21st century has come when people and countries have a limited capacity to cope," said the second report of the Global Crisis Response Group on Food, Energy and Finance over the Ukraine conflict.
The Ukraine conflict has trapped the people of the world between a rock and a hard place. The rock is the severe price shocks in food, energy and fertilizer markets, given the centrality of both Russia and Ukraine in these markets. The hard place is the extremely fragile context in which this crisis arrived: a world facing the cascading crises of COVID-19 and climate change, it said.
"A shock of this magnitude would have been a significant challenge no matter the timing. Now, it is of historic, century-defining proportions," the report said.
The Food and Agriculture Organization's food price index is at near-record levels and 20.8 percent higher than at this time last year. Energy market volatility has increased with the recognition that a prolonged conflict will lead to higher energy prices in the medium to long term.
Crude oil has now reached over 120 U.S. dollars per barrel and energy prices overall are expected to rise by 50 percent in 2022 relative to in 2021. Fertilizer prices are more than double the 2000-2020 average.
Maritime transport costs are more than triple the pre-pandemic average due to the lingering effects of COVID-19 and the destruction of the transport infrastructure of Ukraine, as well as higher volume of traffic- and congestion-related delays and other factors such as rising fuel costs, said the report.
Rising interest rates and growing investor uncertainty have eroded both the value of developing countries' currencies, as well as their capacity to borrow in foreign markets, it said.
"Of greatest concern are the vicious cycles beginning to emerge along the transmission channels of the crisis," said the report.
Higher energy prices, especially diesel and natural gas, increase the costs of fertilizers and transport. Both factors increase the costs of food production. This leads to reduced farm yields and to even higher food prices next season.
These, in turn, add to inflation metrics, contributing to what were already increasing interest rate pressures and tightening financial conditions. Tighter financial conditions erode the buying power of the currencies of developing countries, further increasing the import costs of food and energy, reducing fiscal space and increasing the costs of servicing debt, it said.
The vicious cycles created by a cost-of-living crisis can also spark social and political instability, warned the report.
To break the vicious cycles that feed into and accelerate this cost-of-living crisis, two broad approaches are required: mitigating the impacts of the shock and increasing the capacity of people and countries to cope, it said.
To mitigate the impacts of the crisis, markets must be made more stable and debt and commodity prices must be stabilized. This is critical to immediately restore the availability of food for all people and all countries with equitable and adequate supplies at accessible prices.
An effective solution to the food crisis cannot be found without reintegrating food production in Ukraine, as well as food and fertilizers produced in Russia, into global markets. Other initiatives include continuing to release strategic food and energy stockpiles into markets, controlling hoarding and other speculative behavior, avoiding unnecessary trade restrictions and committing to increased efficiency in the use of energy and fertilizers in developed countries, said the report.
To increase the capacity of people and countries to cope, social protection systems and safety nets must be widened and fiscal space must be increased, it said.
Social protection measures and fiscal space are, in fact, linked. Countries need support from the financial institutions to increase their fiscal space to, in turn, increase social protection spending, including cash transfers to the most vulnerable. The international community needs to help countries protect their poor and vulnerable, it said.
There is no answer to the cost-of-living crisis without an answer to the crisis of finance in developing countries, said the report.
Existing international financing mechanisms to support strong national fiscal responses need to be fully funded and operationalized quickly. Multilateral development banks must be capitalized and apply more flexible lending ratios.
The global debt architecture is not ready to face the current crisis, which arrives during a moment of record-high debt levels and rising interest rates. Current tighter monetary conditions increase the risk of a systemic debt crisis, said the report.
The Group of 20's Debt Service Suspension Initiative should be renewed, and maturities should be pushed back by two to five years. The Common Framework for Debt Treatment needs to be improved. A systematic approach to multilateral debt restructuring and relief, which includes vulnerable middle-income countries, must also be pursued to ensure long-term solutions to current challenges, it said.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for immediate action. "The message of today's report is clear and insistent: we must act now to save lives and livelihoods over the next months and years. It will take global action to fix this global crisis. We need to start today."
UN Conference on Trade and Development Secretary-General Rebeca Grynspan, a member of the Steering Committee of the Global Crisis Response Group, who launched the report together with Guterres, also stressed the urgency of the matter.
"We are in a race against time. This is why we are calling for action, action, and action. Dealing with the consequences of inaction -- let me assure you -- will be much more costly for all than acting now," she said.
UNITED NATIONS - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday warned that the Ukraine conflict may trigger social and economic chaos around the world.
The three-month-old conflict brings new bloodshed and suffering for those on the ground. For people around the world, the conflict, together with the other crises, is threatening to unleash "an unprecedented wave of hunger and destitution, leaving social and economic chaos in its wake," he said at the launch of a second report by the Global Crisis Response Group on Food, Energy and Finance over the Ukraine conflict.
"Today's report makes clear that the war's impact on food security, energy and finance is systemic, severe, and speeding up. It is amplifying the consequences of the many other crises the world faces: climate, COVID-19, and the severe global inequalities in the resources available for the recovery from the pandemic," said Guterres.
He warned that while vulnerable people and vulnerable countries are being hit hard, no country or community will be left untouched by this cost-of-living crisis.
Food prices are at near-record highs. Fertilizer prices have more than doubled, sounding an alarm everywhere. Without fertilizers, shortages will spread from corn and wheat to all staple crops, including rice, with a devastating impact on billions of people in Asia and South America, he said. "This year's food crisis is about lack of access. Next year's could be about lack of food."
Record high energy prices are also triggering blackouts and fuel shortages in all parts of the world, especially in Africa. And the financial squeeze continues on many developing countries -- on top of the risk of debt default and economic collapse because of COVID-19, the inequality of the recovery, and the climate crisis, he noted.
Worldwide, three out of five workers are earning less than before the pandemic. Now, both countries and individuals have no hope of balancing their budgets. Instead, families everywhere are being forced into impossible decisions: whether to shut down their businesses, sell their livestock, or take their children out of school. Women and girls are often the last to eat, and the first to miss meals as food shortages spread, he said.
Guterres called for a political solution to the Ukraine crisis in line with international law and the UN Charter.
Until that happens, he called for immediate action on two fronts: to bring stability to global food and energy markets, to make resources available immediately to help the poorest countries and communities.
Ukraine's food production, and the food and fertilizer produced by Russia, must be brought back into world markets despite the conflict, he said.
Governments must be able to borrow the money they need to keep their economies afloat and their people thriving. There is no solution to this global crisis without a solution to the economic crisis in the developing world. The global financial system must rise above its shortcomings and use all the instruments at its disposal, with flexibility and understanding, to provide support to vulnerable countries and people, he said.
"The message of today's report is clear and insistent: we must act now to save lives and livelihoods over the next months and years. It will take global action to fix this global crisis. We need to start today," said Guterres.
BERLIN - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky agreed on Wednesday that efforts must be made to enable grain exports from Ukraine, the German government said.
In a conversation on the phone Wednesday morning, the two leaders exchanged views on the current military and humanitarian situation in Ukraine, and agreed that efforts must be made to enable grain exports from Ukraine, especially by sea, said a statement issued by the German government.
Scholz also briefed Zelensky on his phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin and French President Emmanuel Macron on May 28, according to the statement.
OTTAWA - Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly announced Wednesday that Canada is imposing new sanctions on Russian oil, gas and chemical industries.
The minister said in a news release that these new measures are imposing a ban on the export of 28 services vital for the operation of the oil, gas and chemical industries, including technical, management, accounting and advertising services.
The banning of the exportation of oil, gas and chemical services is targeting an industry that accounts for about 50 percent of Russia's federal budget revenues, she said.
Since Feb 24 this year, Canada has imposed sanctions on more than 1,070 individuals and entities from and in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus.
Onus on Kyiv to demine key ports and avert food crisis, foreign chief declares
Russia on Wednesday put the ball in Ukraine's court for grain shipments from the country's ports to resume after its declaration that it had completed demining work. It's now up to the Ukrainians to remove the mines they had placed off major Black Sea ports and avert a global food crisis, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Wednesday.
No further action was required by Russia because it had already made the necessary commitments, Lavrov said in comments that came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned of a "very difficult" winter ahead for his compatriots.
Russia's top diplomat was speaking after talks with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu, who described it as "legitimate" Russian demands for an end to sanctions to help bring grain onto the world market.
Lavrov said: "We state daily that we're ready to guarantee the safety of vessels leaving Ukrainian ports and heading for the (Bosporus) gulf. We're ready to do that in cooperation with our Turkish colleagues.
"To solve the problem, the only thing needed is for the Ukrainians to let vessels out of their ports, either by demining them or by marking out safe corridors. Nothing more is required."
Cavusoglu, in stressing the need for Ukrainian grain to reach the international market, told a joint news conference in Ankara: "We see the removal of obstacles standing in the way of Russia's exports as a legitimate demand."
Ukraine responded on Wednesday that it would not demine waters around the Black Sea port of Odessa to allow for grain to be exported, citing the threat of Russian attacks on the city.
"The moment we clear access to the port of Odessa, the Russian fleet will be there," Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesman for the regional administration, said in a video statement on social media.
'Difficult winter'
Amid the talk for a way out of a global food crisis, Zelensky described the upcoming winter as "the most difficult winter of all the years of independence".
In his nightly address on Tuesday, the Ukrainian leader said he had discussed with government officials and representatives of the largest state-owned energy companies the need to "set up a headquarters to prepare for the next heating season".
On the economic front, the World Bank approved $1.49 billion in additional financing for Ukraine on Tuesday to help pay wages for government and social workers, expanding the bank's total pledged support to over $4 billion.
Still, Zelensky said there are "issues of purchasing a sufficient amount of gas for the heating season, coal accumulation, and electricity production".
In the diplomatic sphere, former German chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday defended her yearslong policy of detente toward Moscow, saying she had "nothing to apologize for" even as the Ukraine conflict casts a pall on her legacy.
In her first major interview since stepping down six months ago, Merkel insisted she had not been naive in her dealings with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"Diplomacy isn't wrong just because it hasn't worked," the 67-year-old said on stage in a Berlin theater, in an interview broadcast on the Phoenix news channel.
She recalled the German-French efforts to keep the Minsk peace process for Ukraine alive.
"I don't see that I have to say 'that was wrong' and that's why I have nothing to apologize for." The veteran leader, who frequently met with Putin during her 16 years in power, said the start of Russia's special military operation on Feb 24 had marked a "turning point".
On the battlefield, Moscow claimed advances amid fierce fighting. Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu had claimed to have taken control of 97 percent of Ukraine's eastern region of Lugansk, bringing the Kremlin closer to its goal of fully controlling the eastern industrial heartland known for its coal mines and factories.
After abandoning its attempt to storm Kyiv two months ago, Russia declared that taking the entire Donbas is its main objective.
Agencies contributed to this story.
REN QI in Moscow
renqi@chinadaily.com.cn
UN World Food Program Executive Director David Beasley has warned that the Russia-Ukraine conflict is "a catastrophe on top of a catastrophe" and would have an impact "beyond anything we've seen since World War II" on global food security.
Russia and Ukraine are the world's largest and fifth-largest wheat exporters, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. Combined, they also provide 19 percent of the world's barley supply, and 4 percent of its maize. They account for more than one-third of global cereal exports.
Kyiv is looking for a solution to the problem of grain exports, which have become impossible due to Russia's blockade of Ukrainian ports.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba expressed reservations about NATO's ability to "open "the Black Sea to allow grain exports. Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko said that Moscow is prepared to offer a humanitarian corridor for ships to leave safely.
In recent weeks, the problem of guaranteeing grain exports from Ukraine has been extensively debated on a number of international platforms.
Ukraine was known through history as the breadbasket of Europe. The conflict has left wheat planted months ago unharvested, while maize and sunflowers sown when the conflict broke out missed an application of badly needed fertilizers so they can mature. It is estimated that Ukraine's grain production may fall by more than 50 percent this season.
Russia is the lead producer of fertilizers, accounting for 13 percent of the world's production. Restrictions on Russian fertilizer exports due to US sanctions have led to a spike in global fertilizer prices, forcing farmers in Brazil, the United States and other major agricultural countries to reduce the use of fertilizer, which could affect future harvests.
The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has lasted more than 100 days and has shown no signs of abating. Talks between the two countries have frequently broken down.
"From the start of the military conflict, China has called for a quick resolution to it. Beijing has typically stood for everything good while opposing everything bad－a win-win position. They also support Ukraine resuming grain exports. Actually, Russia does not oppose it either," said Vasily Kashin, deputy director of the Center for Comprehensive European and International Studies in Moscow.
Given the economic weight of Russia and Ukraine in the world, especially in the production of energy and grains, the longer the crisis lasts, the harder it would be for the global economy to heal from its COVID-19 pandemic wounds.
Instead of keeping that in mind, United States-led Western countries were more busy sending shipments of lethal weapons to Ukraine and have imposed sanctions on Russia, risking the prolonged continuation of the conflict but leaving the world to foot the bill.
Food prices have reached an all-time high, as Russian and Ukrainian grain exports are hindered by port disruptions and Western sanctions. In some European countries, necessities such as flour, cooking oil and canned vegetables are sold in limited quantities. Other countries are left scrambling to secure grain and other supplies.
The Russian newspaper Izvestia reported that Turkey and Russia have a plan to open a corridor for grain exports from the port of Odessa.
The newspaper claimed a "road map" will be approved on June 8 and 9 during the visit of the heads of the Russian Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of Defense to Turkey. The Turkish parliament stressed that Ankara, the capital, is taking part in this operation because resolving the international food crisis is critical for the country.
Kashin said Moscow claims that grain exports from Ukraine are impossible by sea because Ukraine mined the waters near the ports and blocked several ships. Thus, resuming grain exports from Ukraine by sea necessitates ironing out a number of problems.
Solving the problem with the renewal of grain exports from Ukraine is also primarily important from a humanitarian point of view, PF Capital chief economist Evgeny Nadorshin said.
He said poor countries are the first to suffer in such a scenario. While wealthier states scoop up raw materials from the markets, the poor countries of Africa, Latin America, and Asia take notice and food shortages and famine may get worse in those regions, Nadorshin said.
Wheat is a staple food for over 35 percent of the world's population. Egypt, Turkey, Bangladesh, and Iran are the top global wheat importers, buying more than 60 percent of their wheat from Russia and Ukraine.
Some 50 countries are highly dependent on supplies from Russia and Ukraine, many of which are least developed or low-income, food-deficit countries in Africa and Asia, said UN Food and Agriculture Organization Director-General Qu Dongyu.
Kyiv - The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that Kyiv is holding talks with the United Nations (UN) and other partners on the establishment of a humanitarian corridor for the export of Ukrainian agricultural products.
"Ukraine is investing all efforts in the unblocking of Ukrainian seaports to prevent a global food crisis," the ministry said in a statement.
Ukraine needs effective security guarantees to restore navigation in the Black Sea, including weapons to protect the coastline from threats from the sea and involving third countries' navies to patrol the relevant part of the sea, the ministry said.
Ukraine appreciates Turkey's efforts aimed at unblocking Ukrainian ports, the ministry said, adding that no agreement between Ukraine, Turkey and Russia on the issue has been achieved yet.
Ukraine has already started supplying grain to the world market by trucks, railway and river transport, the ministry said.
The supplies of Ukrainian grain to the global market have been affected in the recent months due to the blockade of Ukrainian ports by the Russian military.
In 2021, Ukraine harvested a record crop of grain, legumes and oilseeds totaling more than 106 million tons. In the first half of the current marketing year, which lasts from July 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022, Ukraine exported some $10 billion worth of crops and oilseeds, up 56 percent on an annual basis, Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported in late May, citing data from the Ukrainian Agribusiness Club.
KYIV - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he is not holding talks with third parties over a peace plan to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the Ukrinform news agency reported on Monday.
"I do not have any negotiations about any plans. Such negotiations are at zero level today," Zelensky told reporters on Monday during a press conference, while commenting on media reports that the EU, the United States and Britain allegedly discussed a peace plan for Ukraine.
The international community is having growing fatigue with the conflict, Zelensky said, adding that some countries are trying to convince Ukraine to make unfavorable concessions.
"Everyone surely wants to push us, step by step, towards some result that is for sure unprofitable for us, but beneficial for certain parties that have their interests," he said.
Meanwhile, he stressed that Ukraine must continue its partnership "with all European countries and the world powers".
Turkey can become a mediator in the talks on unblocking Ukrainian ports for grain exports, Zelensky said, adding that Ukraine did not participate in the Turkey-Russia negotiations on the issue.
"I have not been invited. The minister of foreign affairs has not been invited, as of today," he said.
Zelensky said that Kyiv is not considering any alternative to the EU membership, and that its possible agreement with Britain on a defense union is part of Ukraine's security guarantees.
The situation in Ukraine remains unpredictable, and hostilities may erupt anywhere if Ukrainian forces lose ground in Donbass, Zelensky said.
He added that more than 2,500 Ukrainian soldiers from the Azovstal steel plant were captured by Russia following the end of the battle in Mariupol in May.
KYIV - The customs agencies of Ukraine and Moldova have agreed to simplify the procedure of border crossing, the State Customs Service of Ukraine said in a statement on Monday.
The agreement was reached during a meeting of Vyacheslav Demchenko, acting head of the State Customs Service of Ukraine, and Igor Talmazan, director of the Customs Service of Moldova, in Ukraine's southern city of Odesa.
The two countries agreed to work out mechanisms of priority passage of fuel and agricultural goods through the joint border and intensify efforts to speed up the customs clearance procedure.
In particular, the parties agreed to optimize the load on the existing customs infrastructure by redirecting some vehicles to less congested checkpoints.
Besides, Ukraine and Moldova decided to consider expanding the number of checkpoints with phytosanitary and veterinary control, as well as simplifying the entry of Ukrainian trucks without special permits to Moldova.
Last month, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said that Ukraine and Moldova will upgrade their Free Trade Area agreement that was signed in 2003.
NEW YORK - The West, led by the United States, is giving the conflict in Ukraine a momentum that may be impossible to stop, said a recent opinion on The New York Times.
"The United States has helped turn this tragic, local and ambiguous conflict into a potential world conflagration," said contributing writer Christopher Caldwell in the article "The War in Ukraine May Be Impossible to Stop. And the US Deserves Much of the Blame."
The situation on the battlefield in Ukraine has evolved to an awkward stage, the author said, warning that "if the war does not end soon, its dangers will increase."
"Negotiations need to begin in the next two months, before it creates upheavals and tensions that will not be easily overcome," Henry Kissinger, the former US secretary of state, was quoted in the article.
Kissinger warned that "pursuing the war beyond that point would not be about the freedom of Ukraine but a new war against Russia itself."
