源 稿 窗
在文章中双击或划词查词典
字号 +
字号 -
折叠显示
全文显示
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
Russian President Vladimir Putin is remaining silent about a possible extension of the Black Sea grain deal that's set to expire Monday.
In a phone call Saturday with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Putin discussed "the need for a permanent and sustainable solution to the movement of grain from Russia and Ukraine to the international markets," according to the office of the South African president. No further details were provided on the topic.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has asked Putin to extend the Black Sea deal in return for connecting a subsidiary of Russia's Agricultural Bank, Rosselkhozbank, to the SWIFT international payment system, but he has not received a reply, according to a U.N. spokesperson Friday.
"Discussions are being had, WhatsApp messages are being sent, Signal messages are being sent and exchanged. We're also waiting for a response to the letter," U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters when asked about the negotiations.
Earlier Friday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken had urged Russia to extend the Black Sea grain deal.
If Moscow follows through on its threat, developing countries, including in the region, will pay the price, including quite literally with higher food prices, as well as greater food scarcity," Blinken told reporters after the Association of Southeast Asian Nations talks ended in Jakarta, Indonesia. Top diplomats from China, the United States and Russia were among those who gathered for diplomatic discussions.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reportedly said Friday he was in agreement with Putin that the deal allowing the export of Ukrainian grain via the Black Sea corridor should be extended. However, Reuters reports that Erdogan's comments were misconstrued as suggesting an extension deal had been reached when there is no confirmation that it has.
Russia has said it would agree to extend the deal only if its conditions are met regarding its implementation.
Ukraine-S. Korea
In a display of support for war-torn Ukraine, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Saturday made a surprise visit to Kyiv, his first ever, announcing that Seoul will increase aid to Ukraine to $150 million in 2023, following an $100 million aid package in 2022. Yoon also said that Seoul will cooperate with Kyiv on infrastructure projects in Ukraine.
In a news conference Saturday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Yoon said South Korea aims to provide "a larger scale of military supplies" to Ukraine this year, after last year supplying non-lethal military inventory, such as body armor and helmets. He did not provide details. Zelenskyy thanked the South Korean president for his country's "powerful" support.
Earlier this month, Yoon told The Associated Press that supplies of de-mining equipment, ambulances, and other non-military materials "are in the works" after a request from Ukraine, adding that South Korea already provided support to rebuild the Kakhovka Dam, which was destroyed last month.
South Korea, a key U.S. ally in Asia, has joined in the international sanctions against Russia and has provided Ukraine with humanitarian and financial support to Ukraine. So far, though, it has not provided weapons, in line with its long-standing policy of not supplying arms to countries actively engaged in conflict.
Yoon's visit to Ukraine comes on the heels of NATO's two-day summit in Lithuania earlier this week.
The South Korean president and his wife toured Bucha and Irpin, two small cities near Kyiv where mass graves were discovered after Russian troops retreated from the area last year. The South Korean president laid flowers at a monument to the country's war dead.
In his address Saturday, Zelenskyy called Yoon's visit to Ukraine "very important" and "a very important direction of our international work." He also thanked a slew of countries, leaders and organizations for supporting Ukraine against Russian aggression.
Zelenskyy underscored that all Ukrainian land will be liberated. "We cannot leave any of our people, any towns and villages under Russian occupation. Wherever the Russian occupation continues, violence and humiliation of people reign," he said.
Ukrainian counteroffensive
Ukraine's counteroffensive is grinding forward with Russia doing all it can to stop Ukrainian forces from advancing in the east and south of the country, Zelenskyy said during his nightly video address.
"We must all understand very clearly, as clearly as possible, that Russian forces in our southern and eastern lands are doing everything they can in order to stop our soldiers," Zelenskyy said after chairing a meeting with top commanders. "And every thousand meters we advance, every success of every combat brigade deserves gratitude," he said.
Russian forces have launched drone attacks and shelled frontline towns and villages in southern Ukraine over the past 24 hours, leaving at least one civilian injured, local authorities reported on Saturday.
Russia unleashed Iranian-made Shahed-136/131 drones overnight at Mykolaiv and Zaporizhzhia oblasts, the Ukrainian military's Southern Operational Command spokesperson, Natalia Humeniuk, said on television. Ukraine's air defense shot down all three Shaheds in the Mykolaiv Oblast, but there was a hit in the Zaporizhzhia Oblast, she said, without disclosing what was struck.
Russian forces twice attacked the outskirts of Zaporizhzhia city, and a 62-year-old man was wounded, according to Zaporizhzhia Oblast Governor Yuriy Malashko. Neither local authorities nor the military reported what the drones or their shot-down parts hit.
Russia continued its routine shelling of southern Ukraine targeting frontline towns and villages in Zaporizhzhia Oblast 45 times. According to the official, 27 residential and social infrastructure facilities in 15 towns and villages were damaged.
Kherson Oblast Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said Saturday that Russian forces shelled the liberated areas of his region - including Kherson city - 70 times over the past day, using mortars, artillery, tanks, Grad rockets, aviation, and drones. He did not report any casualties.
Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.