Russia-Ukraine War: 18 Latest Developments After The Peace Talks

On Monday, Russian and Ukrainian delegations met at the Belarusian-Ukrainian border for the first talks since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered troops to invade Ukraine last Thursday.

After the talks, both countries agreed to consult and meet again on a yet-to-be-announced date.

However, the Ukrainian presidency had demanded an immediate Russian ceasefire and troop withdrawal ahead of the talks.
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Here are the 18 latest developments in Russia’s war in Ukraine after Monday’s peace talks:

– Kyiv braces –
Satellite images show a vast military column amassing just north of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, where residents are braced for a Russian assault.

The Russian army tells them they can “freely leave” on one highway going south as it hints of attacks on civilian areas.

– Kharkiv assault –
Russian forces shell Ukraine’s second city Kharkiv, killing at least 11 civilians in residential areas, its mayor says.

AFP reports that a school was destroyed, Russian armoured vehicles burnt and corpses of Russian soldiers after earlier fighting were seen.

– Russians reach Kherson –
Russian forces reach the southern city of Kherson near Moscow-controlled Crimea, setting up checkpoints on its outskirts, its mayor says. Moscow claimed to have besieged the city two days ago.

– ‘352 civilians killed’ –
Kyiv says 352 civilians have been killed, including 14 children, since the invasion began last Thursday.

– Half a million refugees –
Nearly 520,000 people have fled Ukraine in the last five days, the UN’s refugee agency says, with tens of thousands more displaced inside the country.

– War crimes –
International Criminal Court prosecutor Karim Khan says he is investigating the “situation in Ukraine”, saying there is a “reasonable basis” to believe “war crimes and crimes against humanity have been committed” since 2014.

– Turkey blocks warships –
Turkey blocks warships from the Bosphorus and Dardanelles strait, limiting the movement of Russian and other naval assets by invoking a 1936 treaty.

– Talks to continue –
Negotiators from Ukraine and Russia end a first round of talks with no breakthrough. Both sides agree to conduct a second round “soon”.

– Putin’s demands –
In a call with French President Emmanuel Macron, Russian leader Vladimir Putin demands the “demilitarisation and denazification” of Ukraine and that the West recognise his annexation of Crimea.
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– Nuclear fear –
The head of the UN atomic energy watchdog, the IAEA, expresses “grave concern” that invading Russian troops are operating close to Zaporizhzhia, the largest nuclear power station in Ukraine.

– Social media curb –
Twitter and Facebook move to curb the online presence of Russian state-linked news outlets.

– Russia kicked out of World Cup –
Russia is expelled from the 2022 World Cup and its teams suspended from all international football competitions “until further notice”, FIFA and UEFA say.

– Ban Russia from sport: IOC
The International Olympic Committee urges sports federations to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes in protest at the invasion.

– Russians expelled –
The United States moves to expel 12 members of Russia’s UN mission from America for being “intelligence operatives”.

– More sanctions –
The US and Canada ban all transactions with Russia’s central bank in an unprecedented sanction.
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The EU adds more Putin allies to its sanctions blacklist, including Kremlin mouthpiece Dmitry Peskov and oligarchs Igor Sechin, Alisher Usmanov, Petr Aven and Mikhail Fridman.

– Ruble crashes –
Putin orders emergency capital controls and forces exporters to buy rubles to prop up the currency, which plunges by a fifth, reaching record lows.

– Finland to join NATO? –Lawmakers in traditionally non-aligned Finland — which has a long border with Russia — are to debate NATO membership. It comes after Helsinki took a “historic” decision to supply weapons to Ukraine.

– No Hollywood films –Disney and Sony Pictures stop the release of their films in Russian cinemas because of its invasion of Ukraine.

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Photo Credit: Getty