The Foreign Minister of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba, said there had not been any recent diplomatic communications between Russia and Ukraine at the level of their foreign ministries and that the situation in the port of Mariupol, which he described as “dire”, maybe a “red line” in the path of negotiations.
On Sunday, he said, “Mariupol may be a red line.” Ukrainian troops opposed the Russian ultimatum to lay down arms on Sunday in the pulverized port of Mariupol. Moscow stated that its forces had almost completely seized in what would be its biggest prize of the nearly two-month war.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal stated that troops in Mariupol were still fighting despite a Russian demand to surrender by dawn.
Kuleba said, “We did not really have any contacts with Russian diplomats in recent weeks at the level of foreign ministers. The only way of contact is the negotiating team, which includes the representatives of several institutions as well as members of parliament. They resume their consultations at the expert level, but no high-level talks are taking place.”
The foreign minister added he was expecting “intensification of heavy fighting in eastern Ukraine in the coming weeks.
When asked about the possibility of U.S. President Joe Biden visiting Ukraine, the foreign minister said Ukraine would be happy to welcome him and that a visit from him would send “a message of support.”
The White House, however, said earlier this week there were no plans for Biden to visit the nation that Russia has invaded on February 24, 2022.
As per the statement released by the White House spokesperson Jen Psaki on Friday, “We are not sending the president to Ukraine.”