Russian President Vladimir Putin met with visiting United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in the Kremlin on Tuesday (local time) to discuss the situation in Ukraine. Putin told Guterres that the Ukrainian issue arose after the 2014 “unconstitutional coup” in Kyiv and people in Donbas remained under blockade and military pressure even after the Minsk agreements on a peaceful settlement were reached. According to Putin, the Donbas “republics” have the right to declare their sovereignty and Russia has the right to recognize their independence and provide them with military assistance in full accordance with the UN Charter.
“Despite the ongoing military operation, we still hope that we will be able to reach agreements on the diplomatic track. We are negotiating and we do not refuse them,” he said.
Guterres proposed creating a contact group where the UN, Russia and Ukraine can discuss the situation together
so that the humanitarian corridors are truly effective. He said that to resolve the situation in Ukraine’s Mariupol, the UN is ready to fully mobilize its logistical capabilities and human resources, working together with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as well as the Russian and Ukrainian armed forces.
Guterres also said that the UN is ready in two or three days, together with the ICRC, to assess the situation at the Azovstal plant in order to evacuate civilians from there. In response, Putin denied reports that Russian humanitarian corridors are not working and stressed that 130,000 to 140,000 people have left Mariupol with the assistance of Russia and they are free to go anywhere. Putin also offered an opportunity to UN and ICRC representatives to have a look at how Russia treats Ukrainian war prisoners.
Before his trip to Moscow, Guterres met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday in the capital Ankara. The UN chief will travel to Ukraine following talks with Putin.
The United Nations is currently holding talks with Moscow and Kyiv to develop a framework for the evacuation of civilians in Ukraine, UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said on Wednesday.
“Following the agreement reached in principle between the UN Secretary-General [Antonio Guterres] and Russian President [Vladimir Putin], our Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs is mobilizing a team on behalf of the UN system to coordinate the evacuation of civilians in the Azovstal plant in Mariupol,” Haq said. “Today, we are having a follow-up discussion with the authorities in Moscow and in Kyiv to develop an operational framework for the timely evacuation of civilians.” Haq said that the United Nations now is “moving stuff” to some areas in Ukraine to provide assistance.
“We are putting people on the ground and we are in talks with the sides. what we want is to make sure that a ceasefire would be respected and to move people safely,” he added.
Meanwhile, a report from Warsaw said Poland will no longer be purchasing natural gas from Russia; instead the country will increase domestic production and look for alternative supplies, Polish Secretary of State and Government Plenipotentiary for Strategic Energy Infrastructure Piotr Naimski said on Wednesday.
Earlier in the day, Russian energy giant Gazprom announced terminating gas supplies to Polish state-controlled gas group PGNiG and Bulgarian company Bulgargaz for their refusal to proceed with payments in roubles, as it was requested earlier. PGNiG has confirmed the complete suspension of gas supplies by Gazprom under the Yamal contract. “No. We will not be purchasing gas from the Russian side and Russian companies. Period,” Naimski told Polish radio RMF FM.
Meanwhile, a report from Beijing said DJI, the world’s largest drone manufacturer, has announced it is temporarily suspending its operations in Russia and Ukraine. “DJI is internally reassessing compliance requirements in various jurisdictions. Pending the current review, DJI will temporarily suspend all business activities in Russia and Ukraine,” the Shenzhen-headquartered company said in a statement. “We are engaging with customers, partners and other stakeholders regarding the temporary suspension of business operations in the affected territories,” it added.
Earlier, DJI was sanctioned by the US for posing national security risks and supplying drones used to monitor ethnic minority Uyghurs in China’s Xinjiang province.