Russia sets conditions for negotiations with Ukraine
Created: 2023-01-13Updated: 2023-01-13, 10:24 am
By: Bedrettin Bölükbasi, Andreas Schmid, Christian Stör
The debate over the supply of Leopard main battle tanks continues.
Meanwhile there is new movement in negotiations for a ceasefire.
The news ticker.
Panzer turnaround
in
Berlin
?: Lambrecht no longer rules out the delivery of Leopards
Leopard battle tanks
for
Ukraine
: Melnyk reacts angrily to SPD paper
Debate
on
Leopard main battle tanks
: Ex-Nato general taunts
This
news ticker
on diplomacy in the
Ukraine war
is constantly
updated
.
January 13 update. 9.56 a.m .:
Moscow has announced that it intends to forego the participation of Western mediators in the case of peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.
"If these contacts are resumed, they will most likely also be direct," Alexey Polischchuk told the state news
agency TASS
.
Polishchuk is the director of the second CIS department at the Russian Foreign Ministry.
A direct negotiation between the two warring parties is the best option for constructive negotiations for the Russian official.
Because in the past it has often been shown that "Western mediators often pursue their own goals and try to influence the talks by not acting to resolve the conflict but in their own political and economic interests."
Representatives of Russia and Ukraine met in Belarus and Turkey last year to negotiate the further course of the war.
However, the talks were unsuccessful.
Maria Zakharova at one of her weekly briefings in Moscow © SNA/Imago
Ukraine war: Selenskyj wants to strengthen relations with African partners
Update from January 12,
10:50 p.m.: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy continued his “diplomatic marathon”.
With a conversation with Kenya's head of state William Ruto, he also expanded it geographically, said Selenskyj in his daily video address.
"Our foreign policy must reach a new level with African partners," said Zelenskyj.
Specifically, the creation of so-called food hubs - hubs for food - was discussed.
Africa has already recognized that the security of various nations directly depends on Ukrainian food exports.
"And we want to consolidate this at the level of concrete institutions, concrete objects - nodes, that is, concrete guarantees of food stability, which will work constantly and will be one of the new bases of relations between Ukraine and the countries of Africa," stressed the Ukrainian leader.
Ukraine-News: Finland also signals readiness to deliver Leopard 2 tanks
Update from January 12, 9:10 p.m .:
After Poland’s decision to deliver 14 Leopard tanks to Ukraine, Finland is now also considering a delivery of tanks.
According to the Finnish public broadcaster Yle, President Saulo Niinistö stressed that Ukraine could be supplied with Leopard 2 tanks as part of the military support.
However, this can only be done in small numbers because it is not yet a NATO member and has a border with Russia.
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Earlier, a government source confirmed to Yle that it could deliver tanks under certain conditions.
This is likely to further increase the pressure on Germany.
The source pointed out that Helsinki is waiting for a decision from Germany and other major countries.
So far, no decision has been made, the source said.
However, tanks would be supplied if other countries decided to do so as part of a coalition.
Ukraine-News: But no new exchange of prisoners according to Moscow
Update from January 12, 7:15 p.m .:
According to Russian information, Russia and Ukraine did not agree on a new exchange of prisoners during talks in Turkey.
The number of more than 40 prisoners each to be exchanged, reported by Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency on Wednesday, refers to the number of people that both sides have already exchanged in the past, Russian human rights chief Tatyana Moskalkov said on Thursday News agency AFP current situation of talks about a possible exchange of prisoners in the Ukraine war.
Ukraine News: Russia and Ukraine had previously agreed on a prisoner exchange
Moskalkow held talks with her Ukrainian colleague Dmytro Lubinez in Ankara on Wednesday.
The Turkish news agency Anadolu later quoted Moskalkov as saying that both sides had agreed to exchange "more than 40 prisoners" each.
"Someone misunderstood something," Moskalkov said in Ankara.
“We talked about the results of our past work.
These exchanges have already taken place.” She and her Ukrainian colleague Lubinets also exchanged lists of injured soldiers in preparation for possible future exchanges.
Ukraine News: EU Greens put pressure on Scholz for tank deliveries
Update from January 12, 5:30 p.m .:
The Greens in the European Parliament want to personally urge Chancellor Olaf Scholz to deliver battle tanks together with other countries to Ukraine, which has been attacked by Russia.
An amendment by the Greens for a report on EU foreign and security policy states that the European Parliament is calling on Scholz to “initiate a European consortium of relevant European countries to deliver Leopard 2 main battle tanks to Ukraine without further delay deliver".
The plenary session of Parliament will vote on the report next week.
In principle, the parliament had already spoken out in October in favor of helping Ukraine with battle tanks.
The foreign policy coordinator of the Green Group, Reinhard Bütikofer, emphasized on Thursday: "It's not just about supplying small numbers of tanks, but about supporting Ukraine, which can make a difference on the battlefield." It is important that Berlin take up the topic actively and bring about a strong result.
The Socialist Group also tabled an amendment calling for EU states to supply Leopard 2 tanks “under a coordinated EU initiative”.
Ukraine-News: Zakharova attacks West over weapons for Ukraine
Update from January 12, 3:40 p.m .:
According to the state news agency Tass, the spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, commented on the new western arms deliveries to Ukraine.
"Supplying Ukraine with offensive weapons will not prevent our country from achieving the goals of the military special operation," the agency quoted Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov as saying.
She also accused the US of allowing the conflict to escalate with the new deliveries and prolonging “the suffering of the Ukrainian population”.
Zakharova warned: "The new weapons systems that will be supplied to the Ukrainian military will become a legitimate target for Russia."
Panzer turnaround in Berlin?
Lambrecht no longer rules out delivery of Leopards
Update from January 12, 3:20 p.m .:
Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht (SPD) no longer excludes the delivery of battle tanks to Ukraine.
"In the times in which we live, we are well advised to adapt to the respective situation," she said, according to the
editorial network Germany
, during a visit to the troops in Marienberg, Saxony.
She assured that there would be no German going it alone.
However, she did not negate the supply of tanks per se.
Currently, the pressure on Germany to supply tanks is increasing enormously, especially after Poland's decision to supply Ukraine with 14 Leopard 2 tanks.
Poland's government spokesman Piotr Müller had previously emphasized that the decision would also encourage other countries to make deliveries.
Ukraine-News: Poland supplies Ukraine with tanks – Habeck against German objection
Update from January 12, 2 p.m.:
Poland wants to deliver Leopard main battle tanks to Ukraine – as part of an international coalition.
If Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) has his way, the delivery should not fail because of a German objection.
"There is a difference between making a decision for yourself and preventing others from making a decision," said Habeck in Berlin.
"Accordingly, Germany should not stand in the way of other countries making decisions to support Ukraine, regardless of what decision Germany makes."
Poland itself has admitted that its push to supply Ukraine with Leopard main battle tanks is intended to persuade other countries to act.
When asked why Warsaw had signaled its willingness to hand over battle tanks, government spokesman Piotr Müller told TVP Info: "Because we want to enforce certain behaviors.
If we don't defend Ukraine's independence, we are the next target.” Poland therefore wants Ukraine to be able to defend itself and for that it needs equipment.
"This kind of political pressure should lead to other European countries joining," said Müller.
Leopard battle tanks for Ukraine: Melnyk reacts angrily to SPD paper
Update from January 12, 12:20 p.m .:
Should Ukraine get German Leopard tanks?
This is still hotly debated.
The SPD parliamentary group wants to put a different emphasis on their exam.
The word "tank" does not even appear in the draft for a position paper.
Rather, the SPD in the Bundestag is relying on diplomatic initiatives to reach a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine.
The former Ukrainian ambassador to Germany, Andriy Melnyk, was appalled.
"Wars are almost always decided on the battlefield," Melnyk wrote on Twitter.
"Germany should know better."
Debate on Leopard main battle tanks: ex-Nato general taunts
Update from January 12, 10:25 a.m .:
Poland wants to deliver Leopard-type main battle tanks to Ukraine.
"A company of Leopard tanks will be transferred to Ukraine as part of building an international coalition," President Duda's Chancellery said.
However, a permit from Berlin is required for the delivery of German products.
So is Germany part of this “coalition” and already in the know?
In any case, the pressure on Olaf Scholz increases before the next summit in Ramstein, Palatinate.
"The chancellor is caught in the leopard trap," believes ex-NATO general Hans-Lothar Domröse.
"Of course you have to look at the Polish advance with a view to the Ramstein summit next week," said Domröse to the
editorial network Germany
.
Putin confidante Medvedev mocks western tanks: they will soon be "rusty scrap metal"
Update from January 12, 6:24 a.m
.: Will the western tanks in Ukraine soon become useless?
At least that is the opinion of former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
The armored vehicles will not save the collapsing "artificial state" of Ukraine, commented the Vice-Chairman of Russia's National Security Council.
At the meeting between Zelenskyy and Dudas in Lviv, tanks such as the Leopard, modernized T-72 and British tanks were "adored".
"But all this iron will definitely soon turn into rusty scrap metal," Medvedev said.
Medvedev was considered a moderate politician during his time as President of Russia.
Since the beginning of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, he has tried to make a name for himself with extreme positions.
Update from January 11, 7:50 p.m
.: The SPD in the Bundestag continues to rely on diplomatic initiatives to reach a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine.
"Because we know that wars are not usually ended on the battlefield," says the draft for a position paper by the largest government faction, which is to be decided at the annual meeting beginning on Thursday.
"Even if, for understandable reasons, there is no longer any trust in the current Russian leadership, diplomatic talks must remain possible." That is why the talks between Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) and Russian President Vladimir Putin are right and necessary.
Wherever possible, diplomatic initiatives should be taken, according to the draft available to the German Press Agency.
"We must continue to make every attempt to persuade Russia to withdraw and to demand that Russia be honestly willing to conclude a just peace agreement." The Ukrainian government is skeptical about diplomatic initiatives.
She sees no point in negotiations with Russia until all troops are withdrawn from Ukrainian territory.
Update from January 11, 7.40 p.m .:
Russia and Ukraine agreed on another prisoner exchange in Turkey on Wednesday.
Russian Human Rights Commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova said after meeting her Ukrainian colleague Dmytro Lubinets in Ankara that they had agreed to exchange more than 40 prisoners each.
The talks are expected to continue on Thursday.
Hofreiter calls for tanks for Ukraine: "Scholz is now responsible"
Update from January 11, 7:11 p.m
.: Green politician Anton Hofreiter calls on Olaf Scholz to control the delivery of battle tanks to Ukraine at international level.
"Chancellor Scholz is now responsible for coordinating the delivery of the battle tanks with the other Western heads of state and government," Hofreiter told the
Tagesspiegel.
Update from January 11, 6:30 p.m .:
Volodymyr Zelenskyj expressly welcomed Poland’s initiative to provide his country with Leopard main battle tanks.
"Thank you very much to President Duda, the Polish government and all our Polish friends," said Zelenskyj in his daily video address on Wednesday evening on the results of his meeting with his Polish colleague Andrzej Duda and Lithuanian head of state Gitanas Nauseda in Lviv.
Western-made tanks are "the work of our entire anti-war coalition and a new level of our potential."
Poland Considers Supply Of Leopard 2 Tanks: Will Germany Approve?
Update from January 11, 4:10 p.m .:
Poland is ready to deliver Leopard 2 main battle tanks to Ukraine as part of an international coalition.
Polish President Andrzej Duda said this at a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj and Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda in Lviv, western Ukraine.
"A company of Leopard main battle tanks will be handed over as part of a coalition that is forming," Duda said.
For his part, Nauseda stated that he wanted to supply air defense systems to Ukraine.
According to the Unian
news agency, he assured
that Lithuania and Poland would continue to support Ukraine.
Ukraine has long been demanding the delivery of Leopard 2 main battle tanks.
After much hesitation, the federal government announced on Thursday that it would be delivering Marder armored personnel carriers and a Patriot air defense system to Ukraine.
With a view to the Leopard 2 tanks, however, Berlin remains cautious.
Government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said there was “no new status to be communicated” on the subject.
The debate about tank deliveries is particularly explosive because countries like Spain and Poland are not allowed to hand over their Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine without the permission of the manufacturer Germany.
The pressure to grant permission is mounting on Berlin.
Meanwhile, confusion reigns over the situation regarding control of the city of Soledar.
Ukraine denies Russian claims, while Russia speaks of a "icing on the cake".
Ukraine-News: Putin admits "difficult" situation in annexed areas
Update from January 11, 3:15 p.m .:
Around ten and a half months after the start of the war of aggression against Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin described the situation in the illegally annexed areas of Ukraine as “difficult”.
"Fighting is ongoing in some areas," Putin added when speaking to government officials.
"But all this is no reason to take a break and postpone the most pressing issues," said the Kremlin boss.
Putin instructed the Russian cabinet to draw up a plan for the development of the Kherson, Zaporizhia, Donetsk and Luhansk regions in the coming months - for example with a view to infrastructure and social services.
Ukraine War: New prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine agreed
Update from January 11, 1:15 p.m .:
Russia and Ukraine have agreed on a new prisoner exchange in Turkey, as reported by the British broadcaster
Sky News
.
Accordingly, the Russian human rights commissioner Tatiana Moskalkowa and her Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Lubinets agreed on the exchange of 40 prisoners of war from the Ukraine war at a meeting in Ankara on the sidelines of an ombudsman conference.
Further details are not known.
Following the agreement, Moskalkova and Lubinets will visit Turkey's presidential palace, where President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will deliver a speech at the conference, Sky News said.
Ukraine News: Stoltenberg calls for more help for Ukraine
Update from January 11, 12:05 p.m .:
After Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens), NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has again spoken out in favor of more arms deliveries to Ukraine.
The recent fighting in eastern Ukraine showed "how crucial it is that we expand our military support," said Stoltenberg in Brussels on Wednesday.
Stoltenberg emphasized that the support of the NATO countries "makes a real difference in this crucial phase of the war".
He called on the allies: "We have to do more and even faster." Next week, Friday, the allies will discuss increasing military aid at the US military base in Ramstein, Baden-Württemberg.
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin chairs the third meeting of the so-called Ukraine Contact Group.
According to US information, Federal Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht (SPD) has also been invited.
Negotiations in the Ukraine war: Kremlin sees little room for maneuver and blames the West and Ukraine
Update from January 11, 10:40 a.m.:
Russia still sees no scope for peace talks with Ukraine.
Kremlin spokesman Dimitri Peskov blamed the Ukrainian leadership and the West.
Ukrainian law bans the Ukrainian president from contacts with Russia, while the West is unwilling to "allow Kiev flexibility in this matter," Peskov said, according to the state news agency
Tass
.
Therefore, there is currently no prospect of negotiations in the Ukraine war between the warring parties.
In response to a question about the situation in Soledar, Vladimir Putin's spokesman replied: "Let's not rush things, let's wait for official statements." Pro-Russian mercenaries reported on Tuesday (January 10) the Donetsk city had been taken.
So far, however, there is no official confirmation.
In addition, Peskov spoke of a "positive dynamic" for Russia in the course of the war.
Tactical successes are very important.
"But military success is achieved when we achieve the goals set by the supreme commander in the course of the military special operation," he emphasized at the same time.
Ukraine-News: Baerbock in Ukraine - it's about tanks and air defense
Update from January 11, 6:43 a.m
.: During her visit to Kharkiv, Baerbock underlined the need for "further tank deliveries".
This is necessary so that other places occupied by the Russian army can be liberated, said the Foreign Minister in the ARD "Tagesthemen".
Ukraine also needs “further air defense”, especially to protect infrastructure.
However, Baerbock still did not want to give a promise to deliver the German Leopard main battle tanks desired by Kyiv.
She referred to ongoing votes among the allies.
It takes time to think about how to act responsibly - "even if your heart is on fire". But there is also a responsibility to ensure that the war does not spread to other countries.
Zelenskyj expatriates pro-Russian MPs: "Our services work"
Update from January 11, 6:24 a.m
.: Volodymyr Zelenskyj is now expatriating pro-Russian members of parliament: "If representatives of the people decide not to serve the Ukrainian people, but rather the murderers who have come to Ukraine, then our steps will be appropriate," he said Ukrainian President in his recent video address.
According to the constitution, the expatriation was made on the basis of information from the SBU secret service and the migration service.
"Our services work." All four members of parliament are suspected to have Russian citizenship.
Under Zelenskyi's predecessor, Petro Poroshenko, and in the Soviet Union, depriving politically undesirable people of their citizenship was a common practice.
Update from January 10, 7.30 p.m
.: New details on Annalena Baerbock’s trip to Kharkiv.
The foreign minister first went to Kyiv by train, news agencies report.
From the Ukrainian capital, where Ukraine is preparing for a new Russian attack, we then went on to Kharkiv.
Due to the war, it is currently not possible to travel to Ukraine by plane.
Baerbock message to Ukraine: "You can count on our solidarity"
Kharkiv – The war is present in Kharkiv every day.
Less than 40 kilometers separate the eastern Ukrainian city from the border with the aggressor Russia.
Rockets from the neighboring country hit the region almost every day.
A visit to Kharkiv is a gamble.
Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) took the risk on this sunny and cold January day to deliver a message in the Ukrainian wartime winter.
"People in all parts of Ukraine should know that they can count on our solidarity and our support," said Baerbock after arriving in Kharkiv on Tuesday.
In the greatest secrecy, she had traveled to the bullet-riddled city, which the minister sees as a “symbol of the absolute insanity of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine”.
The battle front is currently about 130 kilometers away.
One and a half million people lived in Kharkiv before the war, 500,000 of them had to flee.
Baerbock says: "Today you can see deep traces of Russian destructiveness on practically every street corner."
"In this winter of war, don't lose sight of Ukraine's place in our European family": Annalena Baerbock.
© Bernd von Jutrczenka/dpa/Archive
Historischer Baerbock-Besuch in Charkiw: Anreise unter höchster Geheimhaltung
Noch nie hat sich ein ausländischer Außenminister seit Kriegsbeginn nach Charkiw gewagt. Minus sieben Grad Celsius zeigt das Thermometer, als Baerbock am Mittag am Bahnhof aus einem silbrig lackierten Regionalzug steigt. Hinter ihr liegt eine lange Nacht auf Schienen durch eisige Landschaften. Eine Anreise per Flugzeug ist wegen des Kriegs nicht möglich.
Ihr Amtskollege Dmytro Kuleba hatte Baerbock nach Charkiw eingeladen, damit sie sich vor Ort ein Bild machen kann. Baerbock sagt, sie wolle vor allem den Bewohnerinnen und Bewohnern zuhören, „die der Krieg in diesem bitterkalten Winter, in dem die Temperaturen in der Nacht gerade auf bis zu minus 15 Grad sinken, so hart trifft, dass wir uns das gar nicht vorstellen können“.
Weapons for Ukraine?
Baerbock speaks of "further deliveries"
In Kharkiv, the minister also spoke of "further arms deliveries that Ukraine needs to free its fellow citizens who are still suffering from the terror of the Russian occupation".
Baerbock's visit comes a few days after the German government's commitment to supply German armored personnel carriers to Ukraine settled another point of contention in the mutual relationship.
Baerbock's party friends in Berlin are among those who now want to deliver even heavier military equipment - namely the Leopard battle tank - to the Ukraine.
However, the federal government disagrees.
(as/AFP)
