MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Envoys keep talking, Russia keeps invading Ukraine

”All this can be stopped in a moment,” if Ukraine agrees to Moscow's terms, Peskov said

The third round of talks between Russian and Ukrainian envoys ended Monday with nothing much to account for after nearly three hours at Belovezhskaya Pushcha on the Belarus-Poland border.

“It is too early to talk about something positive,” Vladimir Medinsky, head of the Russian delegation, said.

On the other hand, a Ukrainian official quoted by western media said the Kremlin was engaging in “tactics reminiscent of medieval siege warfare.”

“The discussions continued on political and military aspects. However, it remains difficult,” Medinsky also explained. Russian negotiators reportedly brought a large set of documents, including specific agreements, but the Ukrainian side could not sign them on the spot and took all these documents back home for study.

“To be honest, our expectations from the talks were not met. But we hope that next time we will be able to take a more significant step forward,” Medinsky added. Both sides addressed the issue of civilian evacuation, and the Ukrainian side assured Russia that the humanitarian corridors will start working on Tuesday, he elaborated.

“There was some positive progress when it comes to improving the logistics of humanitarian corridors,” Mykhailo Podoliak, advisor to the Head of the President's Office of Ukraine, tweeted after the negotiations.

“Today there were no results that would significantly improve the situation. Nevertheless, I emphasize once again that the consultations will continue,” Podoliak also pointed out in a video message on Twitter after the talks broke up.

”Intensive consultations have continued on the basic political block of the regulations, along with a ceasefire and security guarantees,” he further explained.

The latest negotiation attempt came as Russia continued to pound its neighbor with bombs and bullets on the 12th day of the invasion.

“[Russia] is resorting to tactics reminiscent of medieval siege warfare, encircling cities, cutting off escape routes, and pounding the civilian population with heavy ordnance,” said Jonathan Gimblett, a lawyer hired by Ukraine to pursue its war-crimes claim against Moscow.

Earlier on Monday, the Kremlin announced it would stop all attacks in Ukraine if the Kyiv government agreed to certain conditions, including ceasing all military action, adjusting the country’s constitution to rule out ever joining NATO, and acknowledging Crimea as Russian territory.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Reuters that Ukraine was aware of the conditions, saying “they were told that all this can be stopped in a moment.”

“They should make amendments to the constitution according to which Ukraine would reject any aims to enter any bloc. This is possible only by making changes to the constitution,” Peskov told the outlet.

Russia also demanded that Ukraine recognize the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic as independent states. “We really are finishing the demilitarization of Ukraine. We will finish it. But the main thing is that Ukraine ceases its military action. They should stop their military action and then no one will shoot,” Peskov said.