Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba held talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Turkey on Thursday. The leaders were meeting for the first time since the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 28. The optimism did not last long, as talks ended in a stalemate. As the conflict entered Day 15, the Ukrainian government said that almost half of Kyiv’s population fled the war. Here are the top five points.

NO BREAKTHROUGH IN RUSSIA-UKRAINE TALKS

Kuleba said Ukraine’s demand for a ceasefire and humanitarian corridor to and from Mariupol was not accepted by Russia. Meanwhile, Lavrov said the meeting could not be an ‘alternative’ to the delegation-level talks held in Belarus earlier. Both sides have agreed to meet again if they can find a solution to end the war.

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Kuleba said, “I made a simple proposal to Minister Lavrov: I can call my Ukrainian ministers, authorities, president now and give you 100% assurances on security guarantees for humanitarian corridors. I asked him can he do the same and he did not respond.”

Lavrov said Ukraine appeared to want meetings for the sake of meetings, and that a ceasefire was not meant to be on the agenda at Thursday’s talks. Lavrov also brushed aside claims of ‘nuclear warfare’ and said he did not believe the conflict in Ukraine would spiral into a nuclear war. He said, “I don’t want to believe it, and I do not believe it.”

HALF OF KYIV RESIDENTS FLED CONFLICT

According to Oblast Governor Oleksiy Kuleba, the northwest regions of Kyiv remain the most dangerous area as they have been cut off from the capital Kyiv by Russian forces. This region includes cities like Bucha, Irpin, Hostomel and Vorzel. The government said that since the invasion began, about half of Kyiv population have fled the conflict.

At least 48,000 Ukrainians have been evacuated through humanitarian corridors.

UN CONDEMNS MARIUPOL ATTACK, EU CALLS IT WAR CRIME

Russian airstrikes destroyed a children’s hospital and maternity ward in Mariupol, killing three and injuring at least 17. Children and women are believed to be trapped under the debris. Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on Twitter that there were “people, children under the wreckage” of the hospital and criticised Russia for calling the attack ‘fake news’. Russia has since said the hospital was attacked as it was a base for Ukrainian nationalists.

Ukrainian emergency employees and volunteers carry an injured pregnant woman from the damaged by shelling maternity hospital in Mariupol. (Photo: AP)

The UN said, “Civilians are paying the highest price for a war that has nothing to do with them.” The European Union called Russian shelling on hospitals a heinous war crime.

KAMALA HARRIS SAYS PUTIN’S INVASION OF UKRAINE MADE NATO STRONGER

US Vice President Kamala Harris said Russian President Vladimir Putin has made the Nato western defence alliance ‘stronger’ by invading Ukraine. Nato alliance is stronger and Russia is weaker because of what Putin has done, Harris said.

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Kamala Harris also supported calls for an international war crimes investigation of Russia over its invasion of Ukraine and the bombing of civilians, including a maternity hospital. Speaking in Warsaw, Harris expressed outrage over the bombing of the Mariupol hospital. Absolutely there should be an investigation, and we should all be watching, she said.

CHINA REFUSES TO SUPPLY AIRCRAFT PARTS TO RUSSIA

China refused to supply Russian airlines with aircraft parts, an official at Russia’s aviation authority was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying, after Boeing and Airbus halted supply of components.

Meanwhile, Russia is reeling under sanctions. The UK government on Thursday sanctioned Roman Abramovich – the Russian oligarch and owner of Chelsea Football Club. Carlsberg breweries also decided to halt operations in Russia, followed by Goldman Sachs. The bank became the first major Wall Street entity to close its operations in Russia.

The Bank for International Settlements also suspended the Russian central bank following sanctions from the West.

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