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Ukraine’s Zelenskyy says he can’t see any outcome from talks between the African delegation and the Russian president.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is meeting Saturday with a delegation of African leaders on a peace mission led by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, as Ukraine continued its counteroffensive in the south of the country.
The meeting in St. Petersburg comes hours after Putin confirmed that Moscow has started moving nuclear weapons into Belarus. He previously said the missile deployment would begin in July.
The African delegation — which also includes leaders of Senegal, Egypt, Zambia and the Comoros — met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Friday, when the Ukrainian capital was hit by Russian airstrikes.
After Friday’s session in Kyiv, Zelenskyy said he could not see any outcome from a meeting between the African delegation and Putin, repeating that peace talks would be possible only after Russia withdraws from Ukrainian territory.
Ties between the South African government — which leads the delegation — and Moscow have raised criticisms, especially among American officials, with the U.S. ambassador to South Africa accusing Pretoria of supplying weapons to Moscow.
Last month, South Africa’s army chief Lawrence Mbatha visited Moscow to discuss military bilateral relations.
The African delegations’ trip to Ukraine and Russia comes as tensions between Putin and the West are escalating. On Friday, the Russian president said Moscow already delivered some nuclear warheads to Belarus and will continue doing so during the summer.
Meanwhile, Kyiv’s forces were pushing the counteroffensive in southern Ukraine. Ukrainian forces around the devastated town of Bakhmut, captured by Moscow last month, were trying to push Russian forces out from the outskirts of the town, according to reports.
“In the south, our troops are conducting active offensive actions in several directions at once,” Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said on Telegram. “Practically in all areas and directions where our units advance in the south, they have tactical success.”
“Gradually move forward. As of now, up to two kilometers in each direction,” Maliar added.
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