Peace talks resume between Ukraine, Russia as war rumbles on

Lviv, Ukraine, Mar 15 (EFE).- Ukrainian and Russian delegations have resumed peace negotiations, presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak said Tuesday, as the war entered its 20th day.

“Talks have resumed. There is a tough discussion between the parties,” Podolyak said, according to Ukrainian state media.

Earlier on Tuesday morning, Podolyak posted a video of himself walking down an empty street in Kyiv in which he praised the heroism of his compatriots, who have withstood waves of Russian aerial bombardments since the invasion began on February 24.

“True freedom always comes at a cost,” Podolyak said, accusing Russia of “fighting only with peaceful cities, destroying them at night with missiles.”

“Our army beats Russians in all directions,” he added.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov reiterated at a press conference that the aim of the current negotiations is to ensure Ukraine’s neutral status, the Russian state agency Sputnik reported.

“The negotiations underway (are aimed at) ensuring Ukraine’s neutral military status in the context of security guarantees for all participants in this process, in the context of the demilitarization of Ukraine, so that no threat to Russia comes from its territory,” Lavrov said.

It is also about “putting an end to the policy of Nazification of the country, which is enshrined in a number of legislative acts,” Lavrov told reporters after a meeting with his Iranian counterpart, Husein Amir-Adollahian.

The first three rounds of bilateral talks were held on Belarusian territory near the border with Poland. EFE

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