Erdogan, playing a mediating role, heads to Ukraine: Live news | Ukraine-Russia crisis News

February 3, 2022 admin

As he departs for Kyiv, Turkish president says he hopes to stop ‘any form of confrontation’ between Russia and Ukraine.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is heading to Kyiv for talks with his counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy after pitching Ankara as a mediator in the Ukraine-Russia crisis.

Erdogan’s trip on Thursday marks the latest in a string of visits to Ukraine by NATO leaders in recent days.

Turkey, which has interests with both Ukraine and Russia, has been playing a mediating role in the crisis so far. While Ankara is involved with Moscow in several global conflicts, it also sells weapons to Ukraine.

Western powers still fear a Russian invasion is possible given the build up of more than 100,000 troops at the Ukraine border, but Moscow denies having plans to attack.

It has instead blamed the United States and the Washington-headed NATO alliance for undermining the region’s security and demanded sweeping guarantees from the West.

The US has dismissed Moscow’s main proposals – that NATO cease activity in Eastern Europe and never allow ex-Soviet state Ukraine to become a member – as non-starters.

And further angering the Kremlin on Wednesday, Washington announced it will deploy troops to Eastern Europe to “deter and defend against any aggression”.

Here are all the latest updates:

23 mins ago (09:06 GMT)

Turkish president urges ‘restraint’ from all sides

Erdogan says ahead of departing for Kyiv that Ankara hopes to stop “any form of confrontation between Russia and Ukraine”.

“We support Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty,” the Turkish leader told reporters in the country’s capital. “As a country of the Black Sea region we advocate … a peaceful resolution … and call upon all parties to use restraint.”

Read what analysts have to say about Turkey’s mediating role here.

“We support [Ukraine’s] territorial integrity and sovereignty.”

Turkiye’s President Erdogan calls upon all parties to refrain from confrontation to reach a peaceful resolution in the Ukraine-Russia standoff pic.twitter.com/9n7a8MEsjU

— TRT World (@trtworld) February 3, 2022

34 mins ago (08:55 GMT)

US’s Omar slams proposed sanctions bill

US congresswoman Ilhan Omar has has condemned a bill that would allow Washington to impose sweeping economic sanctions on Russia should it take aggressive action against Ukraine and supply Kyiv with weaponry.

“The proposed legislative solution to this crisis, escalates the conflict without deterring it effectively,” Omar said in a statement posted on her website.

“I am under no illusions about the horrors an invasion will unleash, or that it is Russia that is responsible for bringing us to the brink … but I cannot in good conscience support a bill that places militarism and economic warfare over the urgent needs of both Ukrainian and Russian civilians,” she added.

The full text of the so-called Defending Ukraine Sovereignty Act of 2022 is accessible here.

54 mins ago (08:35 GMT)

NGO warns escalation would unlease dire humanitarian consequences

The Norwegian Refugee Council says that up to two million people living on both sides of the contact line in eastern Ukraine, where Kyiv has been battling Russian-backed separatists since early 2014, will be under increased threat of violence and displacement if the conflict escalates.

“Active hostilities would dramatically worsen the existing humanitarian situation, where needs are already high from years of violence,” the NGO said in a statement, adding that it called on all parties in the conflict to “prioritise de-escalation, and refrain from all hostilities”.

“It would devastate already damaged civil infrastructure, further restrict peoples’ movements, block access to communities in need, and disrupt essential public services such as water, power, transport and banking. It would also trigger massive new displacements, as millions of people in Donetsk and Luhansk regions would be under threat.”

“The human suffering of renewed conflict would be limitless. It would result in massive civilian casualties and displacement, and soaring humanitarian needs,” warned @NRC_Egeland on a visit to #Ukraine this week. https://t.co/CdQzt2RH5g

— NRC (@NRC_Norway) February 3, 2022

1 hour ago (08:15 GMT)

Biden and Macron review coordinated response to Russia

US President Joe Biden and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron have reviewed the coordination of diplomatic efforts and plans to impose economic costs on Moscow should it invade Ukraine, according to the White House.

“President Biden and President Macron agreed their teams will stay in close touch, including in consultation with NATO Allies and EU [European Union] partners, on our coordinated and comprehensive approach to managing these issues,” the White House said in a readout of Wednesday’s call.