Dialogue on negotiations are set to go further after a weekend where Russia intensified its air strikes on western areas closer to Ukraine’s border with Poland.
Ukrainian officials reported shelling overnight on a residential building in northern Kyiv with rocket attacks on villages in the area continued.
The U.S. and Chinese officials to hold first high-level in person talks on Russian-Ukraine tensions. The development came as U.S. officials said Moscow in the early days of the war sought form Beijing’s military equipments, which they said raised concerns that China could undercut Ukrainian forces’ defense efforts.
Previous rounds of talks have had similar aims but have ended up focused mainly on humanitarian issues and agreed ceasefires to supply towns and cities under siege by Russian forces have frequently failed.
“Negotiations. 4th round. On peace, ceasefire, immediate withdrawal of troops & security guarantees. Hard discussion,” Ukrainian negotiator Mykhailo Podolyak said online.
Writing at the expected start time of 10:30 a.m. Kyiv time (0830 GMT), he said he believed Russia “still has a delusion that 19 days of violence against (Ukrainian) peaceful cities is the right strategy.”
