Day 389 since the beginning of the war: Ministers of the EU countries want to discuss ammunition deliveries. Putin visits occupied Mariupol. All information in the news blog.
The most important things at a glance
London wants to advance war crimes investigations at meetings
00:02: London plans to host an international meeting on Monday to investigate Russian war crimes in Ukraine. Justice ministers from all over the world are coming together to organize financial and practical support for the work of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, as the British Ministry of Justice announced. According to the information, Great Britain is organizing the meeting together with the Netherlands.
“We gather in London today united by the aim of holding war criminals accountable for the atrocities committed during this unjust, unprovoked and illegal invasion of Ukraine,” Justice Secretary Dominic Raab said in a statement. “Britain will continue to support the International Criminal Court with resources, staff and expertise alongside the international community to ensure justice is done.”
Xi Jinping for active efforts to resolve Ukraine crisis
12:01 a.m.: Before a visit to Moscow, Chinese head of state and party leader Xi Jinping emphasized Beijing’s “objective and impartial” position on the war in Ukraine. China is making active efforts to support peace negotiations and reconciliation. Xi wrote in an article for the Russian government newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta, which was published on Sunday.
If the Ukraine conflict were to be settled, the goals and principles of the UN Charter would have to be observed, wrote the Chinese head of state and party. The “reasonable concerns of all states in the field of security” must be taken into account. All efforts to resolve the Ukrainian crisis should be supported. It is important to maintain the stability of the global production and supply chains.
Like Putin, Xi opposed a world order dominated by one power in the article. “The international community sees very clearly that no one country in the world is superior to all others,” he wrote, without mentioning the United States directly. Like Putin, Xi also invoked close Russian-Chinese cooperation.
Four Ukrainian soldiers killed in accident at training ground
11.40 p.m.: Four Ukrainian soldiers died in an accident at a military training ground north of Kiev. The training center in the Chernihiv region announced this on Facebook on Sunday evening, without giving any details. It is being determined how the “extraordinary event” on Saturday could have happened. The condolences of the leadership and soldiers of the center were expressed to the families and friends of the dead.
Putin ahead of Xi’s state visit: “Good old friend”
9:27 p.m.: Russian President Vladimir Putin calls Chinese President Xi Jinping a “good old friend” ahead of his visit to Moscow. Relations between the two countries are at the best possible point and will be further strengthened, according to a statement by Putin on the Kremlin’s website. There are no forbidden topics and no limits in the mutual relationships. Russia and China would coordinate their foreign policies and fight common threats. Russian trade with China will exceed $200 billion this year and it is important to further expand it.
EU ministers discuss ammunition for Ukraine
8:11 p.m.: The foreign and defense ministers of the EU states want to discuss further support for Ukraine in the war against Russia on Monday afternoon. The meeting in Brussels is said to be primarily about the delivery of urgently needed ammunition. The background is concerns that Ukraine could be missing important types of ammunition in the near future. This particularly applies to artillery shells.
The EU Commission and Foreign Affairs Commissioner Josep Borrell had therefore recently presented a plan on how possible deliveries could be accelerated. On the one hand, this involves deliveries from national stocks and, on the other hand, a joint purchase of artillery ammunition. Two billion euros could be made available for this from EU funds.
