Ukraine rejects corridors to Belarus, Russia

A senior Ukrainian official on Monday rejected a Russian proposal to evacuate civilians from besieged Ukraine to Russia and Belarus.

This is an unacceptable option for opening humanitarian corridors, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vereshchuk said at a briefing.

According to the Russian proposal, the only options for civilians fleeing Kyiv and its suburbs would be to go to Gomel in neighbouring Belarus. Civilians in Kharkiv and Sumy in eastern Ukraine would have to flee to the Russian city of Belgorod.

Belarus is a key ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and served as a launching ground for the invasion.

The Ukrainian government is proposing eight humanitarian corridors, including from the southern port of Mariupol, that would allow civilians to travel to the western regions of Ukraine, where there is no Russian shelling.

We demand that the Russian Federation stop manipulating and abusing the trust of the leaders of France, China, Turkey and India, Vereshchuk said

The Hague: A representative for Kyiv urged the United Nations' top court on Monday to order Russia to halt its devastating invasion of Ukraine, at a hearing snubbed by Russia.

Ukrainian representative Anton Korynevych told judges at the International Court of Justice: Russia must be stopped and the court has a role to play in stopping it.

Russia's seats at the Great Hall of Justice in the court's Peace Palace headquarters were empty for the hearing into Ukraine's request for the court to order Moscow to end its attack.


Beijing: China's Foreign Minister on Monday called Russia Beijing's most important strategic partner, amid its continued refusal to condemn the invasion of Ukraine.

Wang Yi told reporters ties with Moscow constituted one of the most crucial bilateral relationships in the world," adding no matter how perilous the international landscape, we will maintain our strategic focus and promote the development of comprehensive China-Russia partnership in the new era.

China has broken with the US, Europe and others that have imposed sanctions on Russia after its invasion of Ukraine. It says Washington is to blame for the conflict in Ukraine.

Vilnius: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has begun a lightning visit to the three Baltic states that are increasingly on edge as they watch Russia press ahead with its invasion of Ukraine.

The former Soviet republics of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia are all members of NATO and Blinken aims to reassure them of the alliance's protection in the event Russia chooses to expand its military operations to other neighbouring countries.

Memories of Soviet occupation are still fresh in the Baltics and since the invasion of Ukraine last month, NATO has moved quickly to boost its troop presence in its eastern flank allies while the US has pledged additional support.

Blinken's Baltic tour opened Monday in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius, where support for Ukraine's resistance to the invasion government is palpable with signs of solidarity with Ukrainians in many businesses and on public buildings and buses.

Unfortunately, the worsening security situation in the Baltic region is of great concern for all of us and around the world, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda told Blinken.

Russia's reckless aggression against Ukraine once again proves that it is a long-term threat to European security, the security of our alliance.

Nauseda said that a policy of deterrence was no longer enough and that forward defense was now needed.

He predicted that Putin will not stop in Ukraine if he will not be stopped Putin. It is our collective duty as a nation to help all Ukrainians with all means available. By saying all, I mean, indeed all means, if we want to avoid the Third World War. The choice is in our hands."

Later Monday, Blinken will travel to Riga, Latvia before visiting Tallinn, Estonia on Tuesday.