Two days after the talks in Istanbul, Ukraine regrets that Moscow has not responded to its proposals to find a path to a stable and lasting peace and has only presented "old ultimatums."
"Russia has not responded to our document for ending the war. We sent it before the meeting. During the meeting, our delegation asked the Russians for their considerations. They did not offer any. Neither during nor after the meeting," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiga denounced. "We demand a response from Russia. Every day of silence on their part shows their desire to continue the war."
This Tuesday, Andriy Yermak, chief advisor to Volodymyr Zelensky, met with US mediators in Washington to try to convince them to impose new sanctions on Russia as a pressure measure for Moscow to consider declaring the 30-day ceasefire requested by Kiev.
Second night with few Ukrainian drones
The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that its defenses shot down seven drones, only one more than the previous day. The drones were destroyed in the border regions of Belgorod and Kursk, as well as over the annexed Crimean peninsula.
On Monday, Russian military had reported neutralizing 162 drones during the night before the negotiations between Moscow and Kiev in Istanbul.
Russia launches 95 drones against Ukrainian territory
Russia launched 95 drones against Ukrainian territory tonight, including Shahed attack drones and imitations used by Russian forces to confuse enemy defenses, as reported in the daily report by the Ukrainian Air Force.
Of the total drones launched by Russia, 61 Shaheds were neutralized by Ukrainian air defenses over various regions in eastern, southern, and northern Ukraine. Of the neutralized drones, 36 were shot down, and the remaining 25 were diverted with electronic interference.
Regional authorities reported several houses and businesses damaged in the cities of Kharkiv (northeast) and Odesa (south) by the Russian attack.
Russian security chief to meet with Kim Jong Un
The Secretary of the Russian Security Council, Sergey Shoigu, arrived in Pyongyang to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un amid the strengthening of the alliance between both countries following the signing of a military cooperation treaty a year ago, as reported by the Tass agency on Wednesday.
This is Shoigu's second visit to Pyongyang in just over two months, and this time it is expected that both parties will discuss their defense agreement and, according to Tass, also the situation in the war in Ukraine, where North Korea has deployed thousands of soldiers to fight in the Russian ranks.
During his previous visit on March 21, Shoigu also met with Kim Jong-un on behalf of Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the start of dialogue between Russia and the US, as well as the war in Ukraine.
Zelensky's advisor's meetings in Washington
The head of the Ukrainian Presidential Office, Andriy Yermak, traveled to Washington leading a Ukrainian delegation to convince the Donald Trump administration to approve new sanctions against Russia and to militarily reinforce Ukraine.
Kiev believes these are the only ways to make Moscow consider declaring the 30-day ceasefire requested by Kiev to give impetus to peace negotiations.
Yermak conveyed Ukraine's positions on the Istanbul negotiations to US Special Envoy for Russia, Steve Witkoff. "The Russian position remains unconstructive. I have emphasized that Russia is blocking and manipulating the negotiation process in an attempt to avoid US sanctions, and has no genuine intentions to stop hostilities. Only strong sanctions can compel Russia to negotiate," Yermak wrote about the meeting with Witkoff.
Yermak also met in the US with the White House envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, President Donald Trump's subordinate who has shown more alignment with Ukraine.
"We demand a response from Russia"
Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Andriy Sibiga, stated in X that the Ukrainian side is still awaiting a response from the Kremlin to the proposals made for the meeting between both sides on Monday in Istanbul, where, according to the Ukrainian diplomacy chief, Russia did not show a constructive attitude and only presented "old ultimatums."
"Russia has not responded to our document outlining the Ukrainian vision for the end of the war. We sent it before the meeting. During the meeting, our delegation asked the Russians for their considerations. They did not offer any. Neither during the meeting nor after," Sibiga wrote on Elon Musk's social network.
Sibiga also accused Russia of responding to Ukrainian "constructive proposals" in Istanbul with "a series of old ultimatums that do not bring the situation closer to peace." "This contradicts previous Russian promises, also to the US, that they would present something realistic and possible this week in Istanbul," the minister emphasized. "We demand a response from Russia. Every day of silence shows their desire to continue the war."