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EIf Helsinki and Stockholm want to join NATO, they will promptly receive a positive response, Stoltenberg said. Earlier, he stressed that the bloc respects the right of Finland and Sweden “not to seek membership in the alliance”

NATO will find a way “relatively quickly” to accept Sweden and Finland if these countries express a desire to join the bloc, Secretary General of the North Atlantic Alliance Jens Stoltenberg said on CNN.

“Of course, it’s up to them, but if they apply, they will be approved by all 30 allies [in NATO],” he expressed confidence. Stoltenberg added that the alliance had a “good dialogue” with the authorities of these countries.

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Finland and Sweden have the status of NATO partner states. The block includes 30 countries, Norway and Denmark are among the Scandinavian states.

On March 31, Stoltenberg, speaking at a press conference in Brussels, said that “there are no allies that were closer to NATO than Finland and Sweden.” According to the Secretary General, the armed forces of these countries meet the standards of the alliance and if Helsinki and Stockholm send applications for membership, the bloc will take it positively. At the same time, he pointed out that NATO supports the right of each country to choose its own path, including the right of Finland and Sweden not to seek membership, as it has been for decades.

Before the start of the Russian military operation in Ukraine, the Finnish authorities said they were ready to apply for NATO membership if the issue of national security became acute. After February 24, Prime Minister Sanna Marin said that, despite the current situation, such a decision would not be made in a hurry, and it had not yet been discussed in parliament. On March 20, President Sauli Niinisto expressed the opinion that if Finland decides to join the bloc, there will be a “big risk” of escalation of tensions in Europe.

However, a few days later, Niinisto said that he had discussed with Stoltenberg the principles and procedures for accepting new members to NATO. The Head of State pointed out that it is necessary to strengthen the security of the country, having studied all the possibilities for this. According to Prime Minister Marin, Finland has until the beginning of summer to make a decision on whether to apply for NATO membership or not.

Swedish Foreign Minister Anne Linde said on February 24 that the country currently does not intend to apply for membership in NATO. Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson agreed with this, as, according to her, this will lead to even greater destabilization in the region.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said that the accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO will have serious military and political consequences, which will entail retaliatory steps by Moscow.

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PThe resident of Ukraine thanked Washington for its support, but noted that the United States, like other countries, has not yet provided guarantees to Kiev. Obtaining such commitments will be key to advancing negotiations with Moscow, he believes

Kiev, Ukraine

The United States has not yet provided Ukraine with security guarantees, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky said in an interview with CBS. Answering a journalist’s question about whether US President Joe Biden made any promises to the Ukrainian authorities during their last conversation, Zelensky said: “I would like to thank the United States administration and Biden for the support from both parties, for everything they do for us. But nevertheless, the United States has not provided us with security guarantees.”

According to the Ukrainian leader, Kiev has not yet received such guarantees from any of the countries.

Zelensky described the security guarantees as a “legally binding document” and not just a “piece of paper”. He believes that obtaining such commitments from allies will be key to advancing the negotiation process with Russia, since sanctions have not had the desired effect. Guarantees should cover not only sanctions policy, but also issues such as “weapons, the human factor and preventive response,” the President said.

On March 29, negotiations between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations took place in Istanbul. At the meeting, representatives of Kiev handed over to Moscow written proposals for a political settlement, which, among other things, provide for the neutral status of Ukraine. Russia, for its part, promised gradual de-escalation in the Kiev and Chernihiv directions.

As the head of the Ukrainian delegation, David Arahamia, noted, Kiev requires clear security guarantees at the conclusion of a peace treaty by analogy with the fifth article of the NATO Charter (it says that an attack on one of the alliance members is equivalent to an attack on the entire alliance), then Ukraine will fix a non-aligned and nuclear-free status. Kiev wants to see permanent members of the UN Security Council (Russia, the United States, Great Britain, France and China) among the guarantors. Zelensky also named Germany, Turkey, Israel and Ireland among these countries.

On March 30, the White House said that Washington is not yet ready to provide specific details on this issue. The UK’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Barbara Woodward, on the contrary, said that London would act as a guarantor if Kiev asked, as it wants to help stop the military actions in Ukraine in any possible way. Germany also expressed its readiness to become a guarantor of security for Ukraine, and the Italian authorities made such a proposal. France is still considering the issue, and China has stated that it has not received a request from Kiev.

The head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky, said after the talks that a lot of work remains to be done on the draft agreement between Russia and Ukraine, the military and diplomatic services of Kiev are still far behind the implementation of those agreements that have already been reached at the political level. He explained that the previously agreed positions— Ukraine’s refusal to deploy nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destructiondefeat, join military blocs, deploy foreign troops and offensive missile weapons, as well as Kiev’s obligation to conduct exercises with the participation of foreign troops only with the consent of the guarantors (including Russia)— were reached at a meeting in Istanbul. Then the parties also preliminarily agreed on a system of international security guarantees for neutral Ukraine, he added.

Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the President of Russia, was also restrained in his assessments of the negotiations: in general, there were no breakthroughs, there is a long work ahead. A positive result of the negotiations in Istanbul is the transfer of Ukraine’s proposals in writing, which it was not possible to achieve before, Peskov noted.

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Fuel storage facilities and aircraft parking near Mykolaiv were destroyed, the agency reported

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The Russian military destroyed large fuel storage facilities in Mykolaiv and Rivne regions, as well as in Ternopil. This was announced by the representative of the Ministry of Defense Igor Konashenkov.

“High-precision air-launched missiles destroyed large fuel storage facilities in Konstantinovka, Mykolaiv region, Slavuta, Rivne region and Ternopil,” he said. According to Konashenkov, these storages supplied fuel to groups of Ukrainian troops in the Mykolaiv and Donetsk directions.

In addition, the Russian Armed Forces hit the Balovnoye airfield in the suburbs of Nikolaev, destroyed the parking lot of aviation equipment and fuel storage there.

The Ministry of Defense reported on the destruction since the beginning of the special operation of 386 Ukrainian drones, 224 anti-aircraft missile systems, 1918 tanks and other armored vehicles, 209 multiple rocket launchers, 814 field artillery and mortars, as well as 1789 units of military vehicles.

At the request of Roskomnadzor, RBC provides data on the details of the military operation in Ukraine based on information from Russian official sources.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the start of a military operation in Ukraine on February 24. According to him, its goal is “demilitarization” and “denazification” of Ukraine. Kiev has severed diplomatic relations with Moscow and imposed martial law. The UN General Assembly demanded that Russia cease fire and withdraw its troops.

The Russian and Ukrainian delegations have been negotiating since the end of February. After the meeting in Istanbul, where Kiev offered to consolidate its neutral status in exchange for security guarantees from the UN Security Council countries, the parties announced progress in negotiations.

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GNATO Secretary General Stotenberg: allies have trained tens of thousands of Ukrainian military personnel, the United States, Britain, Canada and other NATO members have trained tens of thousands of Ukrainian military, now the Ukrainian army is prepared and equipped better than ever before, Stoltenberg said

The North Atlantic Alliance has supported Ukraine for many years, and with the beginning of the Russian military operation, this assistance has intensified, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in an interview with CNN.

“We must remember that NATO allies, such as the United States, Great Britain, Canada and some others, have been training Ukrainian troops for years. Tens of thousands of Ukrainian servicemen, who were trained by NATO allies, are currently fighting on the front line,” he said.

According to Stoltenberg, the Ukrainian forces are now much better equipped and prepared than ever before.

A CNN journalist, asking about what kind of assistance NATO will provide to Ukraine, asked if it includes the supply of Soviet-made tanks. She also recalled that French President Emmanuel Macron opposed the transfer of tanks and aircraft to Ukraine, calling such a step a “red line” that could draw NATO into a direct conflict with Russia. Stoltenberg did not answer the question, pointing out that “it is more important to do something, rather than announce each specific step.”

Stoltenberg has repeatedly said that the alliance supports Kiev, but does not act as a party to the conflict and will not send troops to Ukraine. The alliance rejected Kiev’s request to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine.

Russia is seeking the neutral status of Ukraine. In March, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, after repeated attempts to get a clear answer from NATO, said that he had “cooled down” on the issue of membership in it. According to him, Kiev has been hearing about the open doors of the alliance for years, but also realized that it “cannot enter there, and it must be recognized.”

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Glava ROC explained that in peacetime, the desire to serve in the army may be caused by material considerations, but in the current circumstances it is “a real feat.” He called Russia a peace-loving country that “broke the backbone” of fascism

Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia

Russia is going through a difficult time, on which the historical fate of the people may depend, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia said in a sermon after the liturgy in the main church of the Armed Forces (Armed Forces). He called military service during this period a feat.

According to him, the country “does not often face the battlefield”, but the influx of people into the Armed Forces seeking to devote their lives to the defense of the motherland does not dry up. “And if in peacetime this can be explained by some privileges or material considerations, then in wartime service in the armed forces is a real feat, and this is exactly the time we are experiencing now,” the patriarch stressed. With the activity of the soldiers, he linked the hope “for security, for freedom, for the true independence” of the state.

But it is not only the military who should wake up and wake up now, Patriarch Kirill noted, because a special time has come.

The head of the Russian Orthodox Church called Russia a peace-loving country, and its people long-suffering. The Patriarch recalled that it was Russia that “broke the backbone of fascism”, and without it and without the feat of its people, fascism won. “We have no desire for war or to do something that could harm others. But we are so brought up by our whole history that we love our Fatherland and will be ready to defend it as only Russians can defend their country,” he said.

The patriarch called the military actions in Ukraine an attempt by “different forces” to push brothers against each other. He called for everything to be done to stop the bloodshed and eliminate the danger of “internecine warfare with all its consequences,” but reminded the servicemen of their loyalty to the oath and readiness to “lay down their soul for their friends.”

Russia has been conducting a military special operation in Ukraine since February 24 for “demilitarization and denazification”. The Defense Ministry says that they strike only at military infrastructure. On March 25, the department stated that the main tasks of the first stage of the operation were generally completed.

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has imposed martial law in the country and severed diplomatic relations with Moscow.

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DMitri Peskov: for a meeting between Putin and Zelensky, it is necessary that a specific document ripens Before the meeting of the heads of state, the participants of the delegations must work out a “specific written document,” Peskov explained. At the same time, he stressed that Putin has never refused to meet with Zelensky

Vladimir Putin

In order for the time to come for the meeting of the Presidents of Russia and Ukraine, Vladimir Putin and Vladimir Zelensky, it is necessary that the delegations of the countries develop a specific agreement, said the representative of the President of Russia Dmitry Peskov in the program “Moscow. Kremlin. Putin».

«<...In order for it to take place, it is necessary that a specific document ripens in the depths of the work of the two delegations. Not a set of ideas, but a specific written document. Then it will be the turn of such a meeting," Peskov said.

He also stressed that Putin “has never refused” a meeting with Zelensky, adding that it is “hypothetically possible”.

The presidential representative also expressed hope that the Russian-Ukrainian negotiations would end with the signing of a certain document, and this would be an important step towards normalizing the situation.

The fact that the meeting of the presidents of Russia and Ukraine is possible after the preparation of the agreement was also mentioned by the presidential aide, the head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky. According to him, negotiations between Putin and Zelensky are possible simultaneously with the initialing of the agreement at the level of foreign ministers.

Zelensky has repeatedly stated, both before and after the start of the Russian operation, that he is ready for personal talks with Putin. On March 14, he said that Kiev was seeking their meeting during negotiations with Moscow.

After that, the Kremlin said that there was no progress on this issue yet.

Foreign states, Turkey and Azerbaijan also offered to organize a meeting of the presidents. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly stated that his country is ready to be a mediator and provide a platform for negotiations. According to Erdogan, he is “determined” to hold a meeting as soon as possible.

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According to the newspaper, Berlin thus tried to prevent a conflict between Russia and Ukraine in mid-February. However, President Zelensky did not agree to abandon plans to introduce Ukraine into NATO, the WSJ notes

Olaf Scholz

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in mid-February made an attempt to avoid escalation between Russia and Ukraine and tried to convince President Vladimir Zelensky to refuse to join NATO, writes The Wall Street Journal.

According to the newspaper, this happened on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference on February 19. Scholz suggested Zelensky abandon his intentions to join NATO and declare his neutrality, this became part of a broader deal between Western countries and Russia. It was planned that the agreement would be signed by the Presidents of Russia and the United States, Vladimir Putin and Joe Biden. This also gave Ukraine security guarantees, the newspaper notes.

However, after meeting with Scholz, Zelensky refused the offer. This caused Berlin to worry—«the chances of peace were disappearing», the newspaper writes.

On March 8, Zelensky, in an interview with ABC News, said that he had cooled down on the issue of Ukraine’s accession to NATO. Kiev understands that the alliance is “not ready to accept Ukraine” because it is afraid of contradictions and confrontation with Russia, he added. “We will never beg for something on our knees, we will not be such a country, and I will not become such a president”,Zelensky promised.

Later, he stated the need to recognize that Ukraine “will not enter” NATO.

The Ukrainian and Russian delegations are negotiating to resolve the situation in Ukraine, several rounds have already been held. On March 29, the head of the Russian delegation, presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky publicly read out Kiev’s proposals for an agreement with Russia. In them, Ukraine also admitted that it would refuse to join the militaryunions, from the deployment of foreign military bases, contingents, conducting military exercises on the territory of Ukraine without the consent of the guarantor states, including Russia. In exchange, Kiev demanded that Moscow not object to Ukraine’s desire to join the EU.

Medinsky called these proposals “a constructive step towards finding a compromise.”

On April 2, the head of the Ukrainian delegation, David Arakhamiya, said that the Russian side had agreed with all Kiev’s proposals, except for the issue of Crimea. However, Medinsky stressed that there is still a lot of work to be done on the draft agreement between the two countries. “With regard to the readiness of the draft agreement for the summit, unfortunately, I do not share Arahamia’s optimism,” he said.

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Tramp: the threat from “sick and radical” politicians inside the United States exceeds the threat from Russia “Sick and radical” politicians inside the United States pose a greater danger to the country than Russia, China or Iran, Trump believes. In his opinion, the United States is threatened by inflation and recession

Donald Trump

The greatest danger to the United States is posed by radical American politicians who are trying, consciously or unconsciously, to “destroy our country,” former President Donald Trump said during a speech to supporters in Michigan. The video was published by Newsmax on YouTube.

“Despite everything you hear and see about China, Russia, Iran and others, our greatest danger does not come from outside, our greatest danger comes from sick and radical politicians,” Trump said.— This is a bigger threat than Russia and China»

In his opinion, the United States is now teetering on the brink of “stagflation” inflation and recession, and the administration of current President Joe Biden is threatening to destroy everything that Trump has achieved during his presidency. “Real wages are falling, and they want to raise your taxes,” he pointed out.

During his speech, Trump also stated that Americans “can’t do anything about the physical and mental decline [of the condition].” Joe Biden, however, they may vote for Republicans this fall to stop the decline of the United States. “I don’t remember a time when we ever felt at such a low level, at such a low level. And we have a president who has no idea what’s going on,” Trump believes.

In his opinion, the current American president “killed the American dream”, but the country still has a chance to become “bigger, stronger and more powerful than ever before” with the right leadership. “The five worst presidents in American history combined didn’t cause the damage that Joe Biden did.”inflicted in just 15 months», — sure Trump. He warned that if the Republicans win the elections this fall, an investigation will be launched against Biden.

Midterm elections to the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate are scheduled for November 8, 2022.

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According to the German Chancellor, the consequences of these problems will affect not only Russia and Ukraine, they are already being observed in the world.

The difficulties that have arisen in the global economy amid the coronavirus pandemic will worsen due to the situation in Ukraine, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said at an election event in Essen, DPA reports.

According to him, “all the difficulties that the world economy is facing today, and which were already quite large due to the coronavirus pandemic”…>, now getting even bigger». The consequences of these problems will be visible far beyond the borders of Russia and Ukraine, they can be seen all over the world right now, five weeks after the start of the special operation, the chancellor believes.

Scholz called for an early end to the fighting. He called the sanctions of Western countries against Russia “effective measures” and expressed the opinion that the West acted quickly and cohesively in the current situation.

At the end of March, Moody’s experts published a report on how the restrictions imposed against Russia will affect the economy of the CIS countries (available to RBC). They warned of an increase in unemployment and a decrease in the volume of money transfers from Russia (this income item is important for Central Asian countries). Experts also reported problems with the transit of goods from the CIS through Russia, which most affected the economy of Kazakhstan. In conditions of rising inflation, these problemsthey will slow down GDP growth throughout the post-Soviet space, Moody’s concluded. In turn, experts from Renaissance Capital have adjusted forecasts for GDP growth in 2022 for Russia’s partner countries: in the case of Kazakhstan, this indicator fell from 5.3 to 3 to 4%, Uzbekistan from 6 to 4 to 5%.. Armenia’s projected GDP growth decreased from 5.5% to 1%. The anti-Russian sanctions, RBC wrote, will also affect the business of Central Asian countries due to the linking of logistics operations to Russia.

After the start of the Russian special operation in Ukraine, energy prices rose sharply on the European market. On the eve of April 2, protests were held in the UK due to a sharp increase in electricity prices. The day before, the British authorities decided to increase the price threshold for gas and electricity by 54%. The newspaper linked what is happening with the residual impact of the pandemic and the events in Ukraine.

On the same day, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, during a meeting with the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, admitted that Western sanctions against Russia have an ineffective effect on its economy. As an explanation, he drew attention to the growth of the ruble exchange rate.

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Russia sought agreement on the topics on which consensus was previously reached in Istanbul, Medinsky said. So far, he continued, there is a long work to be done on the draft agreement between Russia and Ukraine

Vladimir Medinsky

There is a lot of work to be done on the draft agreement between Russia and Ukraine, the military and diplomatic services of Kiev are still far behind the implementation of those agreements that have already been reached at the political level, the head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky, told Interfax.

“Regarding the readiness of the draft agreement for the summit,” unfortunately, the optimism of [member of the delegation of Ukraine David] I don’t share the Arahamii,” Medinsky said.

He recalled that Arakhamiya stated that the Russian delegation agreed with the proposals of the Ukrainian side on all issues except Crimea. Medinsky stated that the previously agreed positions— Ukraine’s refusal to deploy nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destruction, join military blocs, deploy foreign troops andoffensive missile weapons and Kiev’s consent to conduct exercises with the participation of foreign troops only with the consent of the guarantors (including Russia)All this was achieved at a meeting in Istanbul. The parties also pre-agreed on a system of international security guarantees for neutral Ukraine, he added.

“This, in fact, is what Russia has been persistently and consistently striving for since 2014,” Medinsky said.We understand that Arakhamiya is addressing his audience, and if he calls all this the Ukrainian position, then we are not sorry. He added that Moscow’s position on Donbass and Crimea remains unchanged.

Medinsky also said that the delegations of Moscow and Kiev continued negotiations on April 1. “The work went on all day yesterday, and today it continued both at the level of heads of delegations and experts,” he said. According to him, the parties will continue contacts on Monday, April 4.

So Medinsky commented on the statement of Arahamiya, which he made a day earlier on the air of the Ukrainian TV channel “1 +1”. He said that the Russian delegation at the talks in video format agreed with all Ukraine’s proposals to resolve the crisis, except for the issue of Crimea. Arakhamiya noted that Moscow’s representatives voiced this position verbally, Kiev is waiting for written confirmation.

He added that the working groups communicate daily in an online format, and official delegations negotiate every two days. In addition, a member of the Ukrainian delegation continued, diplomats and lawyers in one of the working groups are working on a draft final document.

The last time the delegations of Moscow and Kiev met in person on March 29, the negotiations took place at the Dolmabahce Palace in Istanbul. Ukrainian representatives conveyed to their Russian colleagues proposals for solving the crisis. Thus, Ukraine has agreed to a non-aligned neutral status, subject to the provision of international legal security guarantees from a number of states – Russia, China, Israel, as well as from NATO members the United States, Great Britain, Germany, Poland, Canada, Turkey, France and Italy. Berlin, Rome and London have already expressed their agreement.

The delegation of Ukraine also proposed to resolve the issue of Crimea’s ownership in bilateral negotiations for 15 years, while the issue of Donbass at a meeting of heads of state. Kiev also assured that it would not dispute the ownership of these territories by military means.

Russia, among other things, demands to recognize its sovereignty over the Crimea and the independence of the Lugansk and Donetsk People’s Republics.

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