International
Russians and Ukrainians open peace negotiations three years later but do not stop the war
Russia and Ukraine reopened peace negotiations in Istanbul today, stagnant since the first year of the war (2022), and, although they did not stop the fighting, they agreed to study the plans of both sides for a future ceasefire.
“The direct negotiations with the Ukrainian side, organized on the initiative of the Russian president, have just been concluded. In general, we are satisfied with the results and we are willing to continue contacts,” said Vladimir Medinski, Russian chief negotiator, in an appearance before the press.
The talks, chaired by the Turkish Foreign Minister, Hakan Fidan, and which seemed to obviate the most controversial political aspects, lasted for an hour and fifty minutes at the Dolmabahce Palace.
“Today has been an important day for world peace,” Fidan wrote on the X network.
In addition, Moscow and Kiev left the door open to a summit between the presidents of both countries, the Russian Vladimir Putin and the Ukrainian Volodymyr Zelensky, after the former refused to travel to Istanbul.
According to the Turkish network NTV, both delegations will leave the city in the next few hours.
Ukraine, both its president and its negotiators, had repeated ad nauseam in recent days that its main objective was to achieve an immediate cessation of hostilities, for at least 30 days.
There was no agreement – Russia demands guarantees of monitoring and that the enemy will not rearm -, although Moscow opted for a formulation that does not force it for the moment to stop its offensive in the Donbass.
“We have agreed that each party will present its vision of a possible ceasefire and describe it in detail. Once that vision is presented, we consider it convenient – we have also agreed – to continue our negotiations,” said Medinski, who also participated in the March-April 2022 meeting.
In this regard, the Ukrainian Minister of Defense, Rustem Umérov, commented: “All the (possible) modalities have been discussed. Now our colleagues exchange documents.”
What does this mean? Apparently, Russia wants to buy time. But the patience of the European Union (EU) has a limit and Brussels could apply at any time the 17 package of sanctions approved this week against the Russian banking and energy system.
In fact, at the end of the negotiations, Zelenski and the leaders of Germany, France, the United Kingdom and Poland spoke by phone from Tirana with US President Donald Trump.
“Our position: if the Russians reject a total and unconditional ceasefire and put an end to the massacre, there must be forceful sanctions. The pressure on Russia must be maintained until Russia is ready to end the war,” Zelenski wrote on his social networks.
In the same vein, French President Emmanuel Macron considered it “unacceptable that, for the second time, President Putin does not respond to the demands made by the Americans and supported by Ukraine and Europe.”
In addition to the verbal commitment to hold a second round of negotiations, the only concrete agreement reached today is the exchange of a thousand prisoners on each side.
In a clear measure to increase confidence between both sides, Moscow and Kiev announced that they will carry it out “in the coming days”.
This is the largest exchange of prisoners of war – Zelenski had proposed an exchange of all for all – since the beginning of the contest on February 24, 2022.
In turn, Medinski revealed that Kiev had proposed to Moscow a future summit between Putin and Zelenski, who have not been seen since December 2019 in Paris, a few months after the Ukrainian leader came to power.
“The Ukrainian side requested direct negotiations between the heads of state. We have taken note of that proposal,” said the Kremlin advisor.
Then, Umerov confirmed the request after Putin’s refusal to attend the appointment was about to destroy the negotiations.
“We are also preparing a potential meeting between the leaders of both countries,” he said in a brief statement.
Trump, who had shown himself willing to meet with Putin and Zelenski, returned to the United States today after his first foreign tour without fulfilling his wish.
In this regard, he assured on Friday that he is willing to meet with Putin “as soon as we can organize it” and assured that he understands that the Russian president did not go to Istanbul without his presence.
“If I didn’t go, it was guaranteed that Putin wasn’t going to go and he didn’t go. I can understand it, but we’re going to get it,” he said.
The Kremlin today considered this summit “extremely important” to achieve lasting peace in Ukraine.
“Those contacts would be extremely important in the context of the Ukrainian arrangement (…) Without a doubt, that meeting is necessary,” said Dmitri Peskov, presidential spokesman, during his daily telephone press conference.
Yesterday was marked by the crossing of insults and reproaches between Moscow and Kiev and by the confirmation that the presidents of Ukraine, Volodimir Zelenski; Russia, Vladimir Putin; and the United States, Donald Trump; would not participate in the contacts, the first between Ukraine and Russia since April 2022.
Trump said on Friday that he is willing to meet with Vladimir Putin “as soon as we can organize it” and assured that he understands that the Russian president did not go to Istanbul without him being present to advance the peace talks between Kiev and Moscow.
“I would go from here, although I want to see my wonderful grandson,” Trump said at a bilateral event with companies in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in reference to the fact that his daughter Tiffany has just had a child and wants to return to meet him.
“If I didn’t go, it was guaranteed that Putin wasn’t going to go and he didn’t go. I can understand, but we are going to get it,” said Trump, who from the beginning was in favor of facilitating the meeting between Zelenski and Putin in Istanbul this Friday.
The Kremlin considered today “extremely important” a possible summit between the presidents of Russia, Vladimir Putin, and the United States, Donald Trump, for the peaceful settlement in Ukraine.
Finally, Putin, who initially proposed the meeting, did not travel to Istanbul to lead his delegation of negotiators, something that Zelenski did, who in the absence of the Russian president continued with an agenda that has now taken him to Albania.
For NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Russian President Vladimir Putin has made a mistake in sending a delegation in which no member reaches the rank of minister to the negotiations in Istanbul to try to end the war in Ukraine.
Rutte said that he “knows Putin well” from his time as Dutch prime minister and appreciated that the Russian president “knows perfectly well that the ball is in his field, that he has problems and that he has made a mistake by sending a low-level delegation.”
International
Looting Spreads in Venezuela’s Hardest-Hit Areas After Deadly Earthquakes
Not even the wires were left behind at a small grocery store. Before the ground had even stopped shaking, looting and theft began in the areas hardest hit by the double earthquake that struck Venezuela.
Reports of robberies have multiplied in the coastal state of La Guaira, located near Caracas and now transformed into a landscape of collapsed buildings and debris.
Videos circulating on social media show groups of people removing boxes of household appliances from a damaged store. Other images show similar boxes being carried on top of vehicles and motorcycles.
Social media platforms have also been filled with accusations against police officers and military personnel who allegedly stole from homes and even from victims who died during the disaster.
A branch of a major pharmacy chain was looted, along with supermarkets and other businesses. Some residents have described the situation as “disaster tourism,” while others say the looting reflects hunger and desperation among people who lost everything in a country already facing a prolonged economic crisis.
“Is it fair that our own people turn against our own people?” said María Esther Bernal, 71, who rented commercial spaces to Chinese merchants, all of which were looted. “They left nothing behind, not even the wallpaper. They even took the cables,” she said.
“Next door, a man died. He was Chinese. People walked over his body while they looted the place. It was a supermarket,” she added.
An AFP journalist witnessed looting in La Guaira since Thursday, following the earthquakes.
Jenifer Mayora, 34, defended some of the actions, saying that “the things people took were because the owners of the stores allowed us to take them.”
However, she criticized the limited response from authorities. “I have been waiting for a mattress so my children can sleep,” she said.
Residents have expressed anger over what they describe as a slow and insufficient response from authorities after the double earthquake, which has left around 1,450 people dead and tens of thousands missing.
Communities are demanding not only faster rescue operations in La Guaira, but also stronger security measures and urgent assistance with food, water, and medicine.
International
UN warns Venezuela earthquakes could affect up to 6.76 million people
Up to 6.76 million people could be affected by the devastating earthquakes that struck Venezuela on June 24, according to an assessment released by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), a United Nations agency.
The organization said the projections are based on available population data and damage assessments, and include up to two million people living in Caracas, the country’s capital.
The estimates highlight the potentially massive humanitarian impact of the disaster, the IOM warned.
Entire buildings collapsed in La Guaira, a coastal area north of Caracas, following the powerful twin earthquakes that reached magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5 on Wednesday.
The national death toll has risen to 920, while rescue teams continue searching for people trapped beneath the rubble in coastal regions and other affected areas.
UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher told AFP on Friday that more than 50,000 people were reported missing.
The IOM also revealed that it worked with Microsoft’s artificial intelligence laboratory on an initial satellite mapping analysis, which showed that 31.5% of buildings in the town of Catia La Mar had suffered damage.
Authorities and international rescue teams continue operations as Venezuela faces one of its largest humanitarian emergencies in recent years.
International
United Nations Coordinates Relief Efforts as Venezuela Death Toll Rises After Twin Quakes
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Thursday expressed his condolences to the people of Venezuela following the two devastating earthquakes that struck the country and highlighted the ongoing coordination between UN humanitarian teams and interim President Delcy Rodríguez.
Speaking during the UN’s daily press briefing, spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said Guterres was deeply saddened by the loss of life and widespread destruction caused by the disaster.
“The Secretary-General is deeply distressed by the loss of life and the widespread devastation caused by the earthquakes that struck Venezuela yesterday. He extends his heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and wishes a speedy recovery to those injured,” Dujarric stated.
Venezuela was struck on Wednesday by two powerful earthquakes measuring 7.2 and 7.5 in magnitude. According to official figures, the disaster has left at least 164 people dead and 971 others injured.
Dujarric noted that preliminary reports indicate significant damage across several states, including the capital, Caracas. Numerous casualties have been reported, while other individuals remain trapped beneath collapsed structures or are still missing.
“Critical infrastructure has been damaged and essential services have been disrupted,” the spokesperson said.
The United Nations confirmed that its humanitarian team remains in close contact with interim President Delcy Rodríguez and other relevant authorities as emergency operations continue.
To support relief efforts, the UN has established a coordination center in Caracas and is assisting local authorities to ensure that humanitarian aid reaches affected communities as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Guterres also welcomed the expressions of solidarity and offers of assistance from countries around the world that responded following news of the disaster, underscoring the importance of international cooperation in addressing the humanitarian emergency.
Looting Spreads in Venezuela’s Hardest-Hit Areas After Deadly Earthquakes
UN warns Venezuela earthquakes could affect up to 6.76 million people
United Nations Coordinates Relief Efforts as Venezuela Death Toll Rises After Twin Quakes
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