About 20,000 people have managed to escape the port of Mariupol in private cars, say officials
\n KIEV
\nRussia and Ukraine both emphasised new-found scope for compromise on Wednesday as peace talks were set to resume three weeks into a Russian assault that has so far failed to topple the Ukrainian government.
\nUkraine\u2019s President Volodymyr Zelensky said the talks were becoming \u201cmore realistic\u201d, while Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said there was \u201csome hope for compromise\u201d, with neutral status for Ukraine – a major Russian demand – now on the table.
\nThe Kremlin said the sides were discussing status for Ukraine similar to that of Austria or Sweden, members of the European Union that are outside the NATO military alliance.
\nThree weeks into the invasion, Russian troops have been halted at the gates of Kyiv, having taken heavy losses and failed to seize any of Ukraine\u2019s biggest cities in a war Western officials say Moscow thought it would win within days.
\nUkrainian officials have expressed hope this week that the war could end sooner than expected – even within weeks.
\nTalks were due to resume on Wednesday by video link for what would be a third straight day, the first time they have lasted more than a single day, which both sides have suggested means they have entered a more serious phase.
\n\u201cThe meetings continue, and, I am informed, the positions during the negotiations already sound more realistic. But time is still needed for the decisions to be in the interests of Ukraine,\u201d Zelenskiy said in a video address overnight.
\nOn Tuesday, Zelensky had hinted at a possible route for a compromise, suggesting Ukraine would be willing to accept international security guarantees that stopped short of its longstanding hope for full admission to the NATO alliance.
\nKeeping Ukraine out of NATO was long one of Russia\u2019s main demands, in the months before it launched what it calls a \u201cspecial operation\u201d to disarm and \u201cdenazify\u201d Ukraine.
\n\u201cThe negotiations are not easy for obvious reasons,\u201d Lavrov told media outlet RBC news. \u201cBut nevertheless, there is some hope of reaching a compromise.\u201d
\n\u201cNeutral status is now being seriously discussed along, of course, with security guarantees,\u201d Lavrov said. \u201cNow this very thing is being discussed in negotiations – there are absolutely specific formulations which in my view are close to an agreement.\u201d
\nThree million refugees
\nEurope\u2019s biggest war since World War Two has destroyed some Ukrainian cities and sent more than 3 million refugees fleeing abroad.
\nThe streets of the capital Kyiv were largely empty on Wednesday after authorities imposed a curfew overnight. Several buildings in a residential area were badly damaged after what appeared to be a Russian missile was shot down in the early hours of Wednesday, residents and emergency workers said.
\nThere was no immediate word on casualties as a specialist rescue team searched for signs of life amid the rubble. Surrounding streets were covered with broken glass from hundreds of windows shattered in a wide area. What appeared to be a motor from the missile lay twisted on the roadside.
\nStill, Ukrainian forces have withstood an assault by a much larger army. Zelensky claimed Ukrainian troops had killed a fourth Russian major general in the latest fighting. Reuters was not immediately able to verify his statement.
\n\u201cThe occupiers were not successful today, although they threw thousands of their people into battle, in the north, in the east, in the south of our state. The enemy lost equipment, hundreds more soldiers. A lot of dead Russian conscripts, dozens of officers.\u201d
\nUkraine said about 20,000 people had managed to escape the port of Mariupol in private cars, but hundreds of thousands remain trapped under relentless bombardment, many without heating, power or running water.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
About 20,000 people have managed to escape the port of Mariupol in private cars, say officials KIEV Russia and Ukraine both emphasised new-found scope for compromise on Wednesday as peace talks were set to resume three weeks into a Russian assault that has so far failed to topple the Ukrainian government. Ukraine\u2019s President Volodymyr Zelensky […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":249784,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[5019,338,456],"class_list":{"0":"post-249772","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world","8":"tag-peace-talks","9":"tag-russia","10":"tag-ukraine"},"yoast_head":"\n