Russia-Ukraine War Updates: Zelenskyy Calls For Talks With Russia; Russian Army Digs Earthen Berms Around Military Equipment Near Kyiv
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on Saturday for meaningful talks with Russia to stop its invasion of Ukraine, warning it would take “several generations” for Moscow to recover from battlefield losses if it does not reverse course.
Since launching an assault on February 24, Russian troops facing tough resistance have largely stalled in their advance, even as they encroach on the capital Kyiv.
Looking to regain momentum, they have laid siege to cities and blasted urban areas to rubble. Unprecedented Western sanctions aimed at isolating Russia’s economy have done little to halt what President Vladimir Putin calls a ‘special operation’ to reduce its neighbour’s military capabilities and ‘denazify’ its government.
After Russia said it was ‘tightening the noose’ around the key port of Mariupol on the Azov Sea, Ukraine’s defence ministry acknowledged on Friday it had ‘temporarily’ lost access to that body of water, which connects to the Black Sea and would be a major loss for Ukraine. But Western officials say that Russia has taken heavy losses with signs of flagging morale amongst its troops, a trend Zelenskiy alluded to in a video message in which he urged renewed negotiations to end the war.
Follow latest updates on the Russia-Ukraine war here
- Mar 19, 2022, 01:52 PM
Clearing live ordnance in Ukraine will take years: Minister
Ukrainian Interior Minister Denys Monastyrsky says it will take years to defuse the unexploded ordnance once the Russian invasion is over. Monastyrsky told The Associated Press in an interview on Friday that the country will need Western assistance to carry out the massive undertaking after the war.
A huge number of shells and mines have been fired at Ukraine, and a large part havent exploded. They remain under the rubble and pose a real threat, Monastyrsky said in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. It will take years, not months, to defuse them. In addition to the unexploded Russian ordnance, Ukrainian troops have planted land mines at bridges, airports and other key locations to prevent the Russians from using them.
- Mar 19, 2022, 01:49 PM
Body of Indian medical student killed in Ukraine to arrive on March 21
The Karnataka government on Saturday said the mortal remains of a medical student from the state, who was killed in Russian shelling in war-torn Ukraine, is expected to reach the airport here early on March 21, and all the documentations required for transportation have been completed. Naveen Shekarappa Gyanagaudar, a Final Year Medical student in Kharkiv National Medical University, died on March 1, in the conflict zone. Noting that the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had appointed a Funeral Agent to take possession of the mortal remains of Naveen, Manoj Rajan, State Nodal Officer (Ukraine Crisis) in a statement said, the agent has taken possession of the body and after completing necessary paper works has transported it to Warsaw (Poland).
Further, the Indian Embassy in Poland and Funeral Agent have completed all documentations required for transportation of the human remains to India, he said. “The Joint Secretary, Eurasia, MEA has just reported the mortal remains of Shri. Naveen Shekarappa Gyanagaudar are expected to reach Kempegowda International Airport on March 21, 2022 at 0300 hours through Emirates Flight Number EK0568,” he added.
Naveen is from Chalageri village of Ranebennur taluk in Haveri district. According to sources, his parents have decided to donate the body to a private hospital in Davangere, after paying their last respects.
- Mar 19, 2022, 01:49 PM
Russian army digs earthen berms around military equipment near Kyiv: Report According to a CNN report, satellite images show the Russian military digging in and constructing protective earthen berms around its military equipment northwest of Kyiv. Russia’s offensive to capture the capital has largely stalled, NATO officials, said.
The Ukrainian army, meanwhile, has said Russia’s two main routes for attacking Kyiv have been blocked, and that Ukraine launched a counteroffensive on Thursday aimed at gaining decisive control of the city’s suburbs.
- 19, 2022, 01:48 PM
Russian army digs earthen berms around military equipment near Kyiv: Report According to a CNN report, satellite images show the Russian military digging in and constructing protective earthen berms around its military equipment northwest of Kyiv. Russia’s offensive to capture the capital has largely stalled, NATO officials, said.
The Ukrainian army, meanwhile, has said Russia’s two main routes for attacking Kyiv have been blocked, and that Ukraine launched a counteroffensive on Thursday aimed at gaining decisive control of the city’s suburbs.