1. UN Secretary General Guterres with Putin
2. USA bet on victory
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Antonio Guterres in Ankara on Monday
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Image: via REUTERS
1. UN Secretary General Guterres with Putin
Diplomacy in wartime is a tedious business. Today the head of the United Nations is trying to persuade the Russian president to give in.
Chance: The United Nations exercises purposeful optimism ahead of its Secretary-General’s trip to Moscow: “We feel there is a moment of opportunity and this is the time to seize that opportunity,” UN spokesman Farhan Haq said in New York . It’s too early to promise things. “But if we move forward, even in small increments, it ultimately means a lot for tens or hundreds of thousands of people.”
Escape: A good two months after the start of the war in Ukraine, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres is received by Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. In addition to a greater diplomatic role for the United Nations, the meeting in the Kremlin is likely to focus primarily on humanitarian access for the UN and safe escape routes for civilians, for example from the besieged city of Mariupol. The 72-year-old UN chief will also speak to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov beforehand.
Kyiv: After his stay in Russia, Guterres wants to travel to Ukraine, where he is due to meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday. He had criticized Guterres for flying to Moscow first. Guterres has recently come under pressure to take a more active role in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
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Wants to intimidate Russia without being too provocative: America’s Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin
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Image: AP
2. USA bet on victory
The American Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin gathered a number of allies in Ramstein today. It’s about Ukraine’s defense needs.
40: Representatives from as many countries should meet today at least at the American air force base in Rhineland-Palatinate. The number of participants is thus higher than that of NATO members. The alliance includes 30 states. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin invited to the conference at the largest US airbase outside the United States. The aim of the consultations is the lasting security and sovereignty of Ukraine.
Victory: After their visit to Kyiv, Austin and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed the expectation that the Ukrainians could win the war “if they have the right equipment and the right support”. Blinken said that while they don’t know how the war will play out, “we do know that a sovereign, independent Ukraine will exist much longer than Vladimir Putin will be on the scene.”
Weapons: It is not yet clear how the German government will position itself on the arms deliveries. However, the Union faction has now submitted a draft of a motion for a resolution to the Bundestag, in which it calls for heavy weapon systems “from the Bundeswehr’s available stocks to the greatest possible extent”, including main battle tanks, artillery and anti-tank weapons. The traffic light parties want to oppose the Union’s application with their own. Today the parliamentary groups meet and in the evening the coalition committee will probably meet. Meanwhile, Russia is trying to increase the pressure on Germany and is expelling 40 German diplomats from Russia.