More and more direct channels are being cut between the West and Russia.
The EU is planning further sanctions in the Ukraine war.
The negotiation ticker.
Ukraine war: The USA wants to stop any new investments in Russia (
see update from April 5, 9:25 p.m.
).
Over 200 Russian diplomats have been expelled across Europe
(see April 5 update, 8:10 p.m.)
According to a report, the EU is preparing a ban on all coal imports from Russia (
see update from April 5, 5:12 p.m.
).
This
news ticker on negotiations
related to the Ukraine war is continuously updated.
More background information on the Ukraine crisis* here.
Lavrov warns Ukraine against sabotaging negotiations with Russia
Update from April 5, 10:07 p.m .:
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned against sabotaging the negotiations between Moscow and Kiev to end the fighting in Ukraine.
Russia will not engage in a "cat-and-mouse game" like in previous years with the peace plan for eastern Ukraine, Lavrov said on Tuesday in a video distributed by the ministry.
Specifically, Lavrov said Russia does not want a referendum on a possible Moscow-Kyiv treaty to resolve the conflict.
There is "a very high probability" that the negotiation process will start all over again in the event of a "negative result" in the referendum, Lavrov warned.
The Ukrainian negotiators recently agreed to negotiate a neutral status for the country, including renunciation of NATO membership.
In return, Kyiv is demanding security guarantees from third countries.
According to Ukraine, a possible treaty on the country's neutrality should be put to the vote at the end of the population - after the withdrawal of the Russian troops.
Lavrov openly rejected this for the first time.
At the same time, Russia's chief diplomat criticized the fact that the situation in the small Ukrainian town of Bucha near Kyiv was being used to distract from the negotiations.
Hundreds of bodies were found there after Russian troops withdrew.
Lavrov categorically denied Ukraine's accusations that the Russian army had carried out a massacre there.
He claimed it was a provocation by Ukrainian nationalists.
He did not present any evidence of this.
However, he claimed that forces with the "staging" tried to disrupt the process of negotiations
US wants to ban “any new investment” in Russia
Update from April 5, 9:25 p.m .:
The USA wants to announce a new package of sanctions against Russia on Wednesday and also ban “any new investment” in the country.
Stricter sanctions against financial institutions and state-owned companies in Russia as well as new punitive measures against Russian government officials and their families are also planned, as informed circles announced on Tuesday.
The sanctions will therefore be imposed in coordination with the EU and the other G7 countries.
The new sanctions package will impose “significant costs” on Russia and further isolate the country “economically, financially and technologically,” sources said.
Europe expels more than 200 Russian diplomats
Update from April 5, 8:10 p.m .:
In connection with the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, more than 200 Russian diplomats were expelled from Europe within 48 hours.
On Tuesday, Italy, Spain and Slovenia, among others, asked dozens of diplomats from Russia to leave the country.
The Kremlin condemned the expulsions and announced countermeasures.
"Restricting the possibilities for diplomatic communication in such an unprecedentedly difficult crisis environment is a short-sighted step," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov in Moscow.
This further complicates the dialogue between Moscow and the EU that is needed to resolve the conflict.
The expulsion of the Russian diplomats "will inevitably lead to retaliation," Peskov added.
France and Germany had already expelled dozens of Russian diplomats in response to the atrocities in the Ukrainian town of Bucha on Monday.
The federal government declared 40 diplomats “undesirable persons”.
According to representatives of the Foreign Ministry, France called on 35 Russian diplomats to leave the country.
Romania and Slovenia are expelling Russian diplomats
Update 7:44 p.m .:
After several other European countries, Romania also expelled Russian diplomats on Tuesday.
According to the Foreign Ministry in Bucharest, the ten diplomats violated the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.
Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu summoned the Russian ambassador and confirmed to him that Romania strongly condemned "the crimes in Bucha and other places in Ukraine for which Russia is responsible".
Slovenia also expelled 33 Russian diplomats on Tuesday.
This was reported by the Slovenian news agency STA, citing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Accordingly, the ministry summoned the Russian ambassador in Ljubljana, Timur Ejwasow, and informed him that the number of staff at the Russian embassy should be reduced from the current 41 diplomats to 8.
The ministry had expressed "the strongest protest and disgust at the massacre of Ukrainian civilians in Bucha" to the ambassador, it said.
Selenskyj compares Russian attack in front of Spanish parliament with Guernica
Update from April 5, 6:51 p.m .:
The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj compared the suffering of the people in his country with the destruction during the Spanish Civil War in a video link in the Spanish Parliament.
"We are in April 2022, but it seems like April 1937 when the whole world found out about the attack on their city of Guernica," Zelenskyy said.
The small Basque town was largely destroyed in an air raid by the German Condor Legion during the civil war, and up to 2,000 people died.
Russia wants to destroy the Ukrainian people and deprive them of the chance to live free from dictatorship, Zelenskyy said.
He called on the democracies of Europe to stand up to Russia.
"Europe must be strong and stop being afraid," he demanded.
All Spanish companies should withdraw from Russia.
"Support us with arms and sanctions," he concluded his speech to the applause of the parliamentarians, who rose from their seats.
EU before import ban on Russian coal, wood and vodka
Update from April 5, 5:12 p.m .:
Because of the war atrocities in Ukraine, the European Union wants to impose sanctions in the energy sector against Russia for the first time: The EU Commission proposed on Tuesday an “import ban on coal from Russia worth four billion euros a year”. , as Commission President Ursula von der Leyen explained in Brussels.
The import of wood, cement and alcoholic beverages such as vodka should also be prohibited.
Von der Leyen justified the EU's fifth package of sanctions with the "horrible pictures from Bucha and other areas" from which the Russian troops had withdrawn.
This will also ban the export of certain semiconductors, computers and other equipment worth ten billion euros from the EU to Russia.
In addition, Russian ships and ships operated by Russia should no longer be allowed to call at ports in the European Union.
The sanctions already imposed on Russian banks are to be tightened.
According to von der Leyen, a “complete ban on transactions against four important Russian banks, including the second largest Russian bank VTB” is planned.
They have almost a quarter of the Russian banking sector market share and should now be completely cut off from the markets.
Szelenskyj calls for Boucha war crimes tribunal
Update from April 5, 4:34 p.m .:
In his speech to the UN Security Council for the Bucha war crimes, Volodymyr Szelenskyj called for a tribunal in the style of the Nuremberg trials.
Among other things, he said: "You must not get away with it."
Update from April 5, 3:55 p.m .:
Because of the action against the Russian Gazprom group, Vladimir Putin threatens the Europeans with retaliation.
"The situation in the energy sector is deteriorating," emphasized the Kremlin boss, referring to "brute measures including administrative pressure on our company Gazprom in some European countries" that do not conform to the market.
Among other things, he is alluding to the fact that Robert Habeck and the federal government had ordered the Federal Network Agency to temporarily take control of Gazprom Germania.
The Russian leader went on to say at a televised meeting that a threat to nationalize Russian assets is a "double-edged sword".
Putin also announced that in view of the global food shortage, Russian deliveries, especially to "enemy" countries, would have to be closely monitored.
Update from April 5, 2:55 p.m .:
According to EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the EU proposes an import ban on coal * from Russia.
Ukraine war: It is still unclear who will guarantee Ukraine's security
Update from April 5, 2:16 p.m .:
For the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Selenskyj there is still no clarity as to which countries in Ukraine could guarantee their security in the future.
Ukraine does not need 40 partners who are on call, Zelensky said in an interview with Ukrainian television stations in Kyiv on Tuesday.
"We need serious players who are ready for anything.
We need a circle of states ready to deliver all weapons within 24 hours.
We need individual countries on which the sanctions policy really depends.”
In negotiations with Russia to end the war, Kyiv is demanding that several states guarantee Ukraine's security in the future.
According to Zelenskyj, this should be similar to NATO's obligation to provide assistance, of which Ukraine is not a member.
In various proposals, the USA, Great Britain, Poland, but also the current war enemy Russia, Turkey or Germany have been named as possible guarantor powers.
Ukraine War: Italy and Spain expel Russian diplomats
Update from April 5, 1:37 p.m .:
Italy has expelled 30 Russian diplomats in connection with the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.
This step was taken in agreement "with our European and transatlantic partners for reasons of national security," Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio
told RaiNews24 on Tuesday.
Germany and other European countries had previously expelled dozens of Russian diplomats*, whom they accused of espionage, among other things.
The expulsion of the Russian diplomats is also related to the "current crisis situation," said Di Maio, with a view to the Ukraine war.
The Russian ambassador had been informed about the measure, according to the Foreign Ministry in Rome.
In response to the atrocities in Bucha, Ukraine, Spain has also announced the expulsion of “at least 25” employees of the Russian embassy.
Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said on Tuesday that those affected were diplomats and staff.
This was a reaction to the "terrible actions in Ukraine," the minister explained to journalists.
Those affected also posed "a threat to the security interests" of Spain, said Albares.
Update from April 5, 12:40 p.m .:
Russia is also threatened with further sanctions from the USA.
White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan announced that possible measures “related to energy” would be discussed with allies.
After French President Emmanuel Macron had already called for a ban on imports of oil and coal, the FDP also agreed to turn away from Russian oil.
Unlike with gas, the changeover here could “succeed within a few weeks,” said FDP energy expert Michael Kruse.
Update from April 5, 12:09 p.m .:
The EU will apparently ban all coal imports from Russia.
The
Reuters
news agency reports , citing a person familiar with the matter.
Update from April 5, 11:15 a.m .:
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is traveling to Kiev this week for a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
According to her spokesman, she will be accompanied by EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.
The exact day was not announced.
However, the trip takes place before the donor conference planned for Saturday in Warsaw, at which money is to be collected for the millions of refugees and displaced persons from the Ukraine war.
Ukraine war: EU finance ministers discuss oil and coal embargo
First report
: Munich – The fronts in the Ukraine war have hardened further.
Both between the armies on the battlefields and between the political decision-makers, who at least pretend to want to avoid further escalation at all costs.
The European Union (EU)* is apparently planning further sanctions* against Russia*.
According to French information, these should be decided on Wednesday.
The reason for this step was EU State Secretary Clement Beaune on the radio station
RFI
on the reports of civilians killed, as reported by
ntv
.
The 40-year-old did not give any details.
Meanwhile, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on the fringes of the meeting with his EU colleagues that a possible oil and coal embargo against Russia would be discussed.
As incumbent Council President, he campaigned for the approval of all 27 member countries.
For EU Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis, an import ban on oil and coal is “definitely an option”.
In view of the war atrocities in Ukraine, the EU needs a “strong and credible sanctions package”.
When the defenders recaptured around Kyiv*, countless bodies were discovered* in the streets.
They wore civilian clothes and were apparently unarmed, some with their hands tied.
These are all indications that people were being killed indiscriminately in the areas occupied by Russian troops.
+
Butscha after the withdrawal of Russian troops: This is what war zones will look like in 2022.
© Rodrigo Abd/dpa
Ukraine war: Medvedev finds expulsion of diplomats "senseless"
Meanwhile, Russia is apparently reacting to the expulsion of its own diplomats from western countries such as Germany*.
Dmitry Medvedev, who was once allowed to replace Vladimir Putin* for a term as president, announced a tough answer.
In his Telegram channel, the Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council wrote: "It will be symmetrical and destructive for bilateral relations."
Medvedev called the expulsions of the diplomats "pointless" and that they would "lead nowhere".
However, according to him, Russia will react in the same way and slam the doors to the Western embassies: “It will be cheaper for everyone.
And then in the end we'll just be facing each other with guns at the ready.”
(mg) *merkur.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA
List of rubrics: © Patrick Semansky/dpa