UNITED NATIONS – UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres wants to meet with Russian and Ukrainian leaders in Moscow and Quiv to push for peace.
He requested a letter Tuesday to Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin, asking them to “discuss any urgent steps that can be taken to stop the fighting.”
As of Wednesday, his spokesman, Stefan Dujarric, said the UN had not received a response.
Guterres called on Tuesday for a four-day “humanitarian pause” in hostilities Thursday through Sunday, Orthodox Easter, to allow for the evacuation of civilians and aid.
The UN leader is facing questions about whether he will get involved in person. His spokesman said Guterres “is doing what he thinks is the most practical and best way forward.”
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KEY DEVELOPMENT OF THE RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR:
– Russia is hitting Ukrainian cities, pouring more troops into the war
– More than 5 million people have fled Ukraine, says the UN
– Japan officially revokes the status of “most favored nation” of Russia
– The seizure of Chernobyl in Russia is seen as a nuclear nightmare
– China is looking to learn from Russia’s failures in Ukraine
Follow all AP stories about Russia’s war against Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
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OTHER DEVELOPMENTS:
MOSCOW – The Russian Ministry of Defense announced the first launch of its new intercontinental ballistic missile “Sarmat”. President Vladimir Putin has said that these weapons are unique and will make those who threaten Russia think twice.
The ministry said the missile was fired Wednesday from the Plesetsk facility in northern Russia and its warheads hit certain targets at the Kura test site in the far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula.
The Sarmat is a heavy rocket designed to replace the Soviet Voevoda rocket, codenamed Satan by the West. Putin said he could break through any future missile defenses.
Putin called it a “big, significant event” for the Russian defense industry. He said that “Sarmat” will ensure Russia’s security from external threats and “made those who, in the midst of frantic, aggressive rhetoric, are trying to threaten our country, think.”
Russia relies on ground-based ICBMs as the core of its nuclear deterrence and has relied on Sarmat for decades to come. The United States has its own nuclear-capable ICBM, but recently canceled a test to avoid escalating tensions.
Dmitry Rogozin, head of the state agency Roscosmos, which oversees the Sarmat missile factory, described Wednesday’s test as a “gift to NATO” in a comment on his messaging channel.
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MOSCOW – The Russian Ministry of Defense announced the first launch of its new intercontinental ballistic missile “Sarmat”. President Vladimir Putin has said that these weapons are unique and will make those who threaten Russia think twice.
The ministry said the missile was fired Wednesday from the Plesetsk facility in northern Russia and its warheads hit certain targets at the Kura test site in the far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula.
The Sarmat is a heavy rocket designed to replace the Soviet Voevoda rocket, codenamed Satan by the West. Putin said he could break through any future missile defenses.
Putin called it a “big, significant event” for the Russian defense industry. He said that “Sarmat” will ensure Russia’s security from external threats and “made those who, in the midst of frantic, aggressive rhetoric, are trying to threaten our country, think.”
Russia relies on ground-based ICBMs as the core of its nuclear deterrence and has relied on Sarmat for decades to come. The United States has its own nuclear-capable ICBM, but recently canceled a test to avoid escalating tensions.
Dmitry Rogozin, head of the state agency Roscosmos, which oversees the Sarmat missile factory, described Wednesday’s test as a “gift to NATO” in a comment on his messaging channel.
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LONDON – Tennis players from Russia and Belarus will not be allowed to play at Wimbledon this year due to the war in Ukraine, the All England Club announced on Wednesday.
Prominent players affected by the ban include current US Open champion Daniil Medvedev, who recently reached No. 1 in the ATP rankings and is currently No. 2; men No. 8 Andrey Rublev; Arina Sabalenka, who was a Wimbledon semifinalist in 2021 and is No. 4 in the WTA rankings; Victoria Azarenka, former No. 1 in women who has won the Australian Open twice; and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, runner-up at last year’s French Open.
Wimbledon starts on June 27.
Russian athletes have been banned from competing in many sports since their country’s invasion of Ukraine. Belarus helped Russia in the war.
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SOFIA, Bulgaria – Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has asked Bulgaria to join international efforts to support his country with military aid.
“The Bulgarian government and parliament know very well what the Ukrainian demands are … When you are waging war, you need everything – from bullets to fighters. We have given the same list to all NATO member states, “Kuleba said on Wednesday after meetings with Bulgarian officials.
“I hope that the Bulgarian government will consider all possibilities for assistance to Ukraine,” he added.
Bulgarian President Rumen Radev warned against supplying weapons to Ukraine, citing the dangers of involving his country more directly in the war.
The ruling coalition in Sofia is blocked by the Socialist Party, which opposes any military aid to Ukraine, leaving Bulgaria as the only EU member, except Hungary, which has so far been reluctant to send weapons to Kyiv.
“I have to keep in mind the political situation in your country and leave the matter to the Bulgarian government,” Kuleba said. However, he warned that those who choose not to help Ukraine “actually support Russian aggression and the killing of our citizens.”
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HELSINKI – Estonia says it has banned public gatherings where people display military symbols on Russian flags during Victory Day celebrations on May 9, traditionally celebrated by the Baltic country’s significant ethnic Russian population to mark the end of World War II. world War.
“The Estonian state has so far been tolerant of the events of May 9, but Russia’s ongoing actions in Ukraine preclude public meetings in Estonia that express support for the aggressor state and display military symbols,” the police and border guard said on Wednesday. Elmar Waher.
Police said on Wednesday that the commemoration of those killed in World War II was not banned in the country, but “should not be used to incite violence and hatred between people”.
Prohibited symbols include the flags of the Soviet Union and Russia, Soviet military uniforms, and St. George’s black-and-orange ribbon worn in Russia to mark the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany during World War II.
The ban is valid until May 10 and applies to the capital Tallinn and the surrounding area.
Ethnic Russians make up about 25% of Estonia’s 1.3 million population and traditionally gather to lay flowers on May 9 in front of a statue of a bronze soldier in Tallinn in honor of Red Army troops killed in World War II battles in Estonia. .
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MOSCOW – Russia will “act consistently” to ensure that life in Ukraine’s eastern industrial center “normalizes”, President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday.
Speaking at a meeting with members of a state-funded non-profit organization, Putin promised that “we will act consistently and ensure that life in Donbass returns to normal.”
Putin said military action in eastern Ukraine, where Russian-backed rebels have been fighting Ukrainian forces since 2014, has prompted Russia to launch a military operation.
“All these eight years there have been bombings, artillery strikes and hostilities. And, of course, it was very, very difficult for the people, “Putin said. “The purpose of the operation is to help our people living in Donbass.
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MOSCOW – A Kremlin spokesman said Russia had presented Ukraine with a draft document outlining its demands as part of peace talks and is now awaiting a response from Kyiv.
An adviser to the Ukrainian president said Kyiv was considering the proposals.
Dmitry Peskov told reporters in a conference on Wednesday that Russia had handed over to Ukraine a draft document containing “absolutely clear, detailed wording” and now “the ball is in their court, we are waiting for an answer”.
Peskov did not give more details. He blamed Ukraine for the slow progress, arguing that Kyiv was constantly deviating from confirmed agreements. Ukrainians do not show much inclination to intensify the negotiation process, he said.
Ukraine presented its own project to Russia last month in Istanbul. Moscow has long demanded, among other things, that Ukraine renounce any bid to join NATO. Ukraine has said it will agree to this in exchange for security guarantees from a number of other countries.
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BERLIN – The German government and military reject the Ukrainian ambassador’s claim that the country can spare armored combat vehicles and deliver them to Kyiv.
Ambassador Andriy Melnik, who has often criticized Germany’s slowness in arms supplies and other issues, said the German Bundeswehr was using about 100 Marder vehicles for training and could be handed over to Ukraine immediately.
But Defense Ministry spokesman Arne Kolatz said on Wednesday that Germany needs vehicles to deploy NATO’s eastern flank and train. He said “no delivery of” heavy materials “from the Bundeswehr is planned”.
He was speaking after German Deputy Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Marcus Laubenthal told ZDF television that the military had “broad commitments” and needed the weapons systems they had.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday that Germany is reaching the limits of possible supplies of weapons from its own stockpiles and will finance Ukraine’s purchases of …
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