Ukraine-Russia War News Live Updates: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan holds phone talks with Putin, Zelensky – The Economic Times
In his phone conversation with Putin, Erodgan expressed Turkey’s wish for an extension of the grain deal reached in Istanbul, adding that Ankara is ready to facilitate this in every possible way, according to the Turkish presidency.
The Turkish President also discussed with them the latest developments in the Ukraine crisis, and thanked the two leaders for their solidarity over the devastating earthquakes that hit southern Turkey in early February. On July 22, 2022, Russia and Ukraine separately signed a deal in Istanbul with Turkey and the United Nations on grain and fertiliser exports from Ukraine and Russia to ensure supplies to global markets amid the Russia-Ukraine war. The deal, due to expire on November 19, 2022, was extended for another 120 days.
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One year into invasion, Ukraine mourns dead and vows victory
- Ukraine honored its dead and vowed to keep fighting on Friday while Russia told the world to accept “the realities” of its war but faced new Western sanctions on the invasion’s anniversary.
- At a ceremony in Kyiv’s St Sophia Square, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy bestowed medals on soldiers and the mother of one killed. He fought back tears at the national anthem.
- Washington announced a new $2 billion package of military aid for Ukraine, and a raft of additional sanctions and tariffs hitting Russia’s mining and metals industries, as well as companies from third countries accused of supplying Moscow with restricted goods.
The risk of escalation
American and European leaders repeated in public that it was solely up to Ukraine to define the aims of the conflict and decide when it is ready to negotiate an end to it. But some analysts believe that the risk of escalation by Russia and the blowback effects on the global economy mean that it is in Washington’s interest to push Ukraine toward more realistic war aims and eventual negotiations with Moscow.
What lies ahead for Ukraine?
At the Munich Security Conference last weekend, the full-throated expressions of support for Ukraine rarely included specifics, and in the corridors, Western officials and analysts privately expressed less sanguine views about Ukraine’s ability to achieve its stated goal of full victory.
The losses mount
On the battlefield, Russia’s winter offensive has so far been underwhelming. Ukraine is widely expected to mount a spring offensive of its own, but is running low on ammunition and, Ukrainian officials say, is desperate for better weaponry. Zelenskyy faces the twin tasks of keeping his country’s morale high and maintaining the resolve of Western allies.
Problems aplenty for both nations
Declaring the resolve to fight on, however, is much easier than mustering the resources and support to do so. Ukraine, with a population less than a third that of Russia and an economy devastated by the invasion, is increasingly dependent on Western aid. Russia, facing sanctions and voluminous front line casualties, depends on close ties and economic cooperation with China, as well as a populace and a ruling elite that remain willing to accept the pain caused by Putin’s war.
After one year
“Putin is as committed as he’s ever been to his grand victory,” said Eugene Rumer, a former American intelligence officer and the director of the Russia program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington. “Ukrainians are as committed as ever to defeating Putin, even if it will be at a most terrible price.”
Russia, Ukraine and the West vow to fight on
At the one-year mark of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin and President Joe Biden both insisted this week that they were committed to the fight. Putin prepared Russia for a long war to be waged “step by step,” while the American president said “we will not tire” in the quest to ensure a democratic Ukraine.And in a news conference in Kyiv on Friday, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine said he was “confident we will have this victory and hope it will happen this year.”But none of the leaders made it clear what an attainable victory might look like, while hitching their legacies to a war with no discernible end.
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