Safe corridors intended to allow civilians to escape war-torn Ukraine could open Tuesday, a significant move likely to be met with skepticism after similar efforts failed over the last several days.
The proposal made Monday by Russia’s U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia during the U.N. Security Council meeting on the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine included that fleeing Ukrainians would not have to flee to Russia or its ally Belarus, a key issue Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called “just cynicism” and a propaganda effort in the country’s favor.
“This proposal doesn’t have any demands about the citizens being sent necessarily to Russia, into Russian territory,” Nebenzia said. “There’s also evacuation offered towards Ukrainian cities to the west of Kyiv, and ultimately it will be the choice of the people themselves where they want to be evacuated to.”
But doubts abounded, fueled by the failure of previous attempts to lead civilians to safety amid the biggest ground war in Europe since World War II. Zelenskyy’s office would not comment on the latest Russian proposal, saying only that Moscow’s plans can be believed only if a safe evacuation begins.
Latest developments:
► Shares fell in Asia on Tuesday as markets were jolted by another surge in oil prices. The surge in the price of oil past $130 per barrel on Monday was triggered by the possibility the U.S. might bar crude imports from Russia.
► Senior U.S. officials traveled to South America over the weekend to meet with President Nicolas Maduro’s government, a surprise high-level meeting between the countries. According to Reuters, officials discussed easing oil sanctions on Venezuela amid the fallout from a possible oil embargo on Russia.
► Russian banks are looking into issuing cards that operate on a Chinese payment system after American Express, Visa and Mastercard cut off services in Russia citing the invasion.
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