European countries now paying more for weapons than any time since 1989

The outbreak of conflict in Ukraine early last year has led to military expenditure in Europe experiencing its steepest rise in three decades, data released by the Stockholm International Peace Institute, or Sipri, has revealed.

Across the whole world, including Asia and the Middle East, outlay on weapons reached an all-time high of $2.24 trillion last year, but it is the figures for Europe that most catch the eye.

In 2022, states in central and western Europe spent $345 billion, 30 percent more than the figure for a decade earlier, and in real terms a figure that exceeded expenditure in 1989, the last year of the Cold War, before the break-up of the Eastern bloc began.

The conflict of Ukraine had an immediate impact on military spending decisions in central and western Europe, according to Diego Lopes da Silva, a senior researcher at Sipri.

"This included multi-year plans to boost spending from several governments," he said.

"As a result, we can reasonably expect military expenditure in central and western Europe to keep rising in the years ahead."

Of the top 10 heaviest spending nations in the world, three were from western Europe — the United Kingdom, Germany, and France. The UK's total of $68.5 billion included an estimated $2.5 billion, or 3.6 percent, in the form of financial support for Ukraine, while Germany experienced its largest rearmament since World War II.

A whopping 640 percent increase in military expenditure by Ukraine saw it become the country with, by far, the largest share of its GDP, 34 percent, being spent on the military, as opposed to just 3.2 percent the year before, and other countries that sharply increased their military outlay included Finland with 36 percent, Lithuania on 27 percent, Sweden at 12 percent, and Poland with 11 percent.

Nan Tian, another senior researcher at Sipri, warned that the global signs are that the latest spending patterns are unlikely to stop soon.

"The continuous rise in global military expenditure in recent years is a sign that we are living in an increasingly insecure world," he said. "States are bolstering military strength in response to a deteriorating security environment, which they do not foresee improving in the near future."

Aside from Europe, the United States remains by far the world's biggest military spender as its military spending reached $877 billion in 2022, which was 39 percent of total global military spending and three times more than the amount spent by China, the report said.

The 0.7 percent real-terms increase in US spending in 2022 would have been even greater had it not been for the highest levels of inflation since 1981.

"The increase in the USA's military spending in 2022 was largely accounted for by the unprecedented level of financial military aid it provided to Ukraine," said Nan.

WASHINGTON - The United Sates on Wednesday announced an additional package of weapons for Ukraine worth $325 million.

According to a list from the Department of Defense (DoD), the new tranche of security assistance included additional ammunition for the US-provided HIMARS, artillery rounds, anti-armor systems, over 9 million rounds of small arms ammunition, four logistics support vehicles, among other items.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who received a delegation of authority from President Joe Biden to authorize the presidential drawdown of the weapons, said in a statement the assistance is "essential to strengthening Ukraine's defenders on the battlefield."

This is the 36th presidential drawdown of military equipment from the DoD inventories for Ukraine since August 2021.

KYIV - An estimated 7 million Ukrainians have been internally displaced by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported Monday, citing a senior official.

Out of them, about 4.8 million people were officially registered within government agencies as internally displaced persons (IDPs), said Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk.

Some 1 million children were forced to leave their homes due to the conflict, but are residing inside Ukraine, Vereshchuk noted.

According to the latest UN estimates, more than 8.1 million people have fled Ukraine for European countries after the start of the conflict.

KYIV -- Ukraine received the first batch of Leopard 2 tanks from Germany, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported Monday, citing German news outlet Der Spiegel.

The German-made tanks were handed over to Ukraine two months after Berlin's decision to supply them, the news agency said.

It did not specify the number of tanks that were transferred to Ukraine.

In January, Germany decided to supply its Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine and green-lighted requests by other countries to do so.

Media outlets reported that Germany intended to send 18 Leopard 2A6 tanks to Ukraine.

Leaders from the 27 nations in the European Union convened in Brussels, Belgium on Thursday for a two-day summit that was to be dominated by the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Six weeks after their last gathering, the heads of state were set to rubber-stamp a 2-billion-euro ($2.18-billion) package of military aid for Ukraine agreed in principle earlier this week. And they were expected to begin talks on another 3.5 billion euros of financial aid for the coming months.

The Euronews website said the leaders were also likely to discuss the continent's beleaguered economy, ways to bolster trade, steps to control unregulated migration, and green energy.

France said before the meeting that it wanted the bloc to start looking more favorably upon nuclear energy, because of its potential to help with climate-change targets, and because it could reduce the bloc's reliance on Russian fossil fuels.

"What we are asking for… is not so much that nuclear energy be considered green," an unnamed source in the French government told Euronews. "It's that we apply technological neutrality."

Delegates were also set to hear from Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, who was expected to make a speech via video link, and from Antonio Guterres, the secretary-general of the United Nations, who was expected to attend in person.

The Independent website noted that Hungary stands alone among the EU's 27 member nations in insisting it will not contribute to the bloc's supply of armaments to Ukraine.

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban said last month the bloc's willingness to send weapons may have helped prolong the conflict and that the bloc should instead attempt to sit down with Russia to seek a peaceful conclusion.

The Reuters news agency noted that, while the Russia-Ukraine conflict was set to loom large over the two-day summit, delegates were also likely to talk about proposed free-trade agreements with regions, including South America, and with nations, including Australia, India, Indonesia, and Kenya.

National leaders were also expected to find time to discuss the so-called Windsor Framework and Stormont Brake agreed recently between the United Kingdom and the EU.

The mechanisms are aimed at making it possible to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland between Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK, and the Republic of Ireland, which is part of the EU. The border was a flashpoint in the past for sectarian violence and the issue has been a sticking point ever since the UK left the bloc in 2020.

Leo Varadkar, Ireland's premier, said as he left for the meeting: "We will discuss recent developments regarding the Windsor Framework and there will be an important discussion on economic issues, including how to ensure Europe's future prosperity."

The United Kingdom has decided to send battle tanks and armor-piercing ammunition containing depleted uranium to Ukraine, while the United States announced on Tuesday that it will speed up its delivery of tanks, moves that Russian President Vladimir Putin said will elicit a strong response.

"The UK announced not only the supply of tanks to Ukraine but also shells with depleted uranium. ... If all this happens, Russia will have to respond accordingly, given that the West collectively is already beginning to use weapons with a nuclear component," Putin told reporters on Tuesday.

The Russian leader, who met with President Xi Jinping at the Kremlin in Moscow before Xi concluded his three-day state visit to Russia on Wednesday, made the comment in response to a parliamentary answer given by UK Minister of State for Defence Annabel Goldie on Monday.

"Alongside our granting of a squadron of Challenger 2 main battle tanks to Ukraine, we will be providing ammunition, including armor-piercing rounds that contain depleted uranium. Such rounds are highly effective in defeating modern tanks and armored vehicles," Goldie said.

Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu warned that sending Ukraine depleted uranium rounds would bring the world closer to a "nuclear collision" between Russia and the West.

In a Twitter post on Tuesday, the UK's Heritage Party wrote, "We call on the UK government to cease escalation of the Ukraine conflict and to desist from sending Challenger tanks and depleted uranium shells to Ukraine."

According to Antiwar.com, depleted uranium rounds are radioactive and linked to cancer and birth defects, particularly in Iraq, where US forces used them during the 1990-91 Gulf War and the 2003 invasion.

Independent British journalist Richard Medhust, who has nearly 233,000 followers on Twitter, said in a video: "These suits (UK lawmakers) driving around in their Bentleys, they don't represent us. It's up to us now to declare war on the war machine, war on the warmongers, war on the war profiteers, war on the war hawks."

Meanwhile, in a letter sent to US President Joe Biden on Tuesday, four Republican lawmakers requested that cluster munitions — a controversial weapon banned in 110 countries — be sent to Ukraine.

The Biden administration should not hesitate to send cluster munitions because of "vague concerns about the reaction of allies and partners, and unfounded fears of escalation", US Senators James Risch of Idaho and Roger Wicker of Mississippi, and Representatives Michael McCaul of Texas and Mike Rogers of Alabama wrote in their letter.

They urged the Biden administration to "provide Ukraine with the right type and amount of long-range fires and maneuver capability to create and exploit operational breakthroughs against the Russians".

"Providing DPICM (dual purpose improved conventional munitions) will allow Ukraine to compensate for Russia's quantitative advantage in both personnel and artillery rounds, and will allow the Ukrainian Armed Forces to concentrate their use of unitary warheads against higher-value Russian targets," the letter said.

The Pentagon said on Tuesday that it is speeding up its delivery of Abrams tanks to Ukraine, opting to send a refurbished older model that can be ready faster, with the aim of getting the 70-ton machines to the conflict zone by the fall.

The original plan was to send Ukraine 31 of the newer M1A2 Abrams, which could have taken a year or two to build and ship. But officials said the decision was made to send the older M1A1 model, which can be taken from army stocks.

"It is about getting this important combat capability into the hands of the Ukrainians sooner rather than later," said Brigadier General Patrick Ryder, Pentagon's press secretary.

In January, the Biden administration had announced that it would send the tanks to Ukraine, after saying for months that these were too complicated and too difficult to maintain and repair.

The decision was part of a broader political maneuver that opened the door for Germany to announce it would send its Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, and allowed Poland and other allies to do the same.

Ryder, speaking at a Pentagon news conference, said the tanks will be refurbished and refitted to make them combat-ready for Ukraine.

Ukrainian leaders have been pressing for the Abrams, which were first deployed in 1991 and have a thick armor, a 120-mm main gun, armor-piercing capabilities and advanced targeting systems.

The US announced Tuesday that it will speed up delivery of battle tanks to Ukraine, while the UK also will send tanks and depleted uranium shells, a move that Russian President Vladimir Putin said will elicit a response.

"The UK announced not only the supply of tanks to Ukraine, but also depleted uranium shells. But I would like to note that if all this happens, Russia will have to react accordingly," said Putin in Moscow.

In a tweet Tuesday, the UK's Heritage Party wrote: "We call on the UK government to cease escalation of the Ukraine conflict and to desist from sending Challenger tanks and depleted uranium shells to Ukraine."

Journalist Dahr Jamail, in an article for Al Jazeera, wrote: "Contamination from Depleted Uranium (DU) munitions and other military-related pollution is suspected of causing a sharp [rise] in congenital birth defects, cancer cases, and other illnesses throughout much of Iraq.

"Many prominent doctors and scientists contend that DU contamination is also connected to the recent emergence of diseases that were not previously seen in Iraq, such as new illnesses in the kidney, lungs, and liver, as well as total immune system collapse," Jamail wrote.

Also, in a letter sent to US President Joe Biden on Tuesday, four Republican lawmakers have requested that cluster munitions, a controversial weapon banned in 110 countries, be sent to Ukraine.

The Biden administration shouldn't hesitate to send cluster munitions because of "vague concerns about the reaction of allies and partners and unfounded fears of 'escalation'," US senators James Risch of Idaho and Roger Wicker of Mississippi, and representatives Michael McCaul of Texas and Mike Rogers of Alabama wrote in their letter.

"We remain deeply disappointed in your administration's reluctance to provide Ukraine with the right type and amount of long-range fires and maneuver capability to create and exploit operational breakthroughs against the Russians," they wrote.

"Sadly, the immediate consequences of denying DPICM (dual purpose improved conventional munitions) and other items in a timely manner to the Ukrainian Armed Forces are playing out on the battlefield in Bakhmut and elsewhere in Ukraine today.

"Providing DPICM will allow Ukraine to compensate for Russia's quantitative advantage in both personnel and artillery rounds, and will allow the Ukrainian Armed Forces to concentrate their use of unitary warheads against higher-value Russian targets," they wrote.

The Pentagon is speeding up its delivery of Abrams tanks to Ukraine, opting to send a refurbished older model that can be ready faster, with the aim of getting the 70-ton machines to the war zone by the fall, the Pentagon said Tuesday.

The original plan was to send Ukraine 31 of the newer M1A2 Abrams, which could have taken a year or two to build and ship. But officials said the decision was made to send the older M1A1 version, which can be taken from Army stocks.

"This is about getting this important combat capability into the hands of the Ukrainians sooner rather than later," said Brigadier General Pat Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary.

The Biden administration announced in January that it would send the tanks to Ukraine — after saying for months that they were too complicated and too difficult to maintain and repair.

The decision was part of a broader political maneuver that opened the door for Germany to announce it would send its Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine and allow Poland and other allies to do the same.

Ryder, speaking at a Pentagon news conference, said the tanks will be refurbished and refitted to make them combat ready for Ukraine.

Officials at the plant, which is owned by the Army and operated by Reston, Virginia-based General Dynamics, said production totals can vary, based on contract demands. And while they are currently building 15-20 armored vehicles per month, including tanks, they can easily boost that to 33 a month and could add another shift of workers and build even more if needed.

In a video on Twitter, antiwar journalist Richard Medhust, who has nearly 233,000 followers on Twitter said: "These suits driving around in their Bentleys, they don't represent us. It's up to us now to declare war on the war machine, war on the warmongers, war on the war profiteers, war on the war hawks."

Ukrainian leaders have pressed for the Abrams, which were first deployed in 1991 and have thick armor, a 120mm main gun, armor-piercing capabilities and advanced targeting systems.

Annabel Goldie, the British deputy defense minister, in a response to a question on the UK Parliament website, stated: "Alongside our granting of a squadron of Challenger 2 main battle tanks to Ukraine, we will be providing ammunition including armor piercing rounds which contain depleted uranium. Such rounds are highly effective in defeating modern tanks and armored vehicles."

According to antiwar.com, depleted uranium munitions are radioactive and linked to cancer and birth defects, particularly in Iraq, where US forces used them during the Gulf War and the 2003 invasion. Birth defects are still common in Fallujah, Iraq, the website reported.

Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu warned that sending Ukraine depleted uranium rounds brings the world closer to a "nuclear collision" between Russia and the West.

"Naturally, Russia has something to answer this with," he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

UNITED NATIONS - A United Nations spokesperson confirmed on Saturday the extension of a deal allowing exports of grain, related foodstuffs and fertilizers from designated Ukrainian seaports.

"The Black Sea Grain Initiative, signed in Istanbul on 22 July 2022, has been extended," Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said in a statement.

On July 22, 2022, Russia and Ukraine separately signed a document in Istanbul with Turkiye and the United Nations on grain and fertilizer exports from Ukraine and Russia to ensure supplies to global markets amid the Russia-Ukraine armed conflict.

The deal, initially in effect for 120 days, was extended in mid-November 2022 for another 120 days to March 18. "We express our gratitude to the government of Turkiye for the diplomatic and operational support to the Black Sea Grain Initiative," Dujarric said in the statement.

During the first two terms of the initiative, some 25 million metric tons of grain and foodstuffs have been moved to 45 countries, helping to bring down global food prices and stabilizing the markets, he said.

Russia and the United Nations also signed a parallel memorandum of understanding in July 2022 to facilitate unimpeded exports of Russian food and fertilizer. Dujarric noted that the Black Sea Grain Initiative, alongside the agreement with Russia, "are critical for global food security, especially for developing countries." "We remain strongly committed to both agreements and we urge all sides to redouble their efforts to implement them fully," he said. 

China is concerned over the escalation and possible loss of control of the Ukraine crisis, and urges all parties to remain calm and restrained, resume peace talks at an early date and return to the track of political settlement, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang said on Thursday.

In a phone conversation with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, Qin said China hopes Ukraine and Russia could reserve prospects for dialogue and negotiations and never shut the doors to political settlement no matter how difficult and challenging it would be.

Qin reiterated China's objective and fair position on the Ukraine issue, saying that Beijing will continue to play a constructive role in resuming peace talks, easing tensions and restoring peace.

Kuleba briefed Qin on the latest developments and prospects for peace talks, and expressed appreciation for the humanitarian assistance provided by China to Ukraine.

The document regarding the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis issued by China showed China's sincerity to push for a cease-fire and peace talks, he said, adding that Ukraine hopes to maintain communication with China.

In terms of bilateral ties, Qin said the China-Ukraine relationship has maintained a momentum of development over the past 31 years since establishing diplomatic ties. China also appreciates Ukraine's willingness to establish a sincere relationship with China on the basis of mutual respect.

Noting that pragmatic cooperation is well-grounded and has huge potential, Qin said China is ready to work with Ukraine to constantly develop a stable relationship, and China's modernization drive will also provide greater opportunities for mutually beneficial cooperation.

Kuleba said China is not only an important partner of Ukraine, but also an indispensable major country that plays a crucial role in global affairs. He also congratulated China for brokering an agreement between Saudi Arabia and Iran on the restoration of diplomatic ties.

Ukraine considers its relationship with China from a long-term perspective and will continue to abide by the one-China principle and respect China's territorial integrity, he said, expressing hope to enhance mutual trust and deepen cooperation in all fields with China.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also spoke with Kuleba via phone on Thursday.

mojingxi@chinadaily.com.cn

Talks between Russia and the United Nations agree to 60-day continuance

The Ukraine grain export deal that allows ships to export critical supplies from three ports along the Black Sea has been extended, but only by 60 days, following talks between Russia and the United Nations.

Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin confirmed the extension following meetings with top officials at the UN headquarters in Geneva on Monday.

The UN stated it would "do everything possible to preserve the integrity" and continuity of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, the deal agreed between Ukraine and Russia that was initially brokered by Turkiye and the UN in Istanbul, last July.

The 120-day agreement, which was renewed in November, was due to expire on Saturday, and another 120-day extension was on the table.

In a parallel deal with Moscow in July, the UN agreed to help facilitate Russian food and fertilizer exports for a three-year period.

Russia argues that this agreement has not been adhered to, and Western sanctions have impeded its own fertilizer and food exports.

"The Russian side ... does not object to another extension of the 'Black Sea Initiative' after its second term expiration on March 18, but only for 60 days," Vershinin said in a statement issued by the Russian mission in Geneva.

"Our further stance will be determined upon the tangible progress on normalization of our agricultural exports, not[in] words, but in deeds. It includes bank payments, transport logistics, insurance, 'unfreezing' of financial activities, and ammonia supplies via the Tolyatti-Odesa pipeline," he said.

Last week, Vershinin expressed frustration that the parallel agreement is not functioning fully for Russian exports of grain and fertilizer through the Black Sea.

"The comprehensive and frank conversation has once again confirmed that while the commercial export of Ukrainian products is carried out at a steady pace, bringing considerable profits to Kyiv, restrictions on the Russian agricultural exporters are still in place," Vershinin said.

"The sanctions exemptions for food and fertilizers announced by Washington, Brussels and London are essentially inactive."

The UN said it remains fully committed to the Ukraine grain export deal, as well as to efforts to facilitate the export of Russian food and fertilizer.

The global food supply chain was severely affected following the outbreak of conflict between Ukraine and Russia in February last year, with Ukraine being one of the critical breadbaskets of the world and Russia being the world's top fertilizer exporter. Food prices surged, which led to concerns about food shortages in developing nations.

The UN noted that some 24 million metric tons of Ukrainian produce have been transported under the grain export initiative so far, which allowed "over 1,600 secure vessel voyages through the Black Sea with 55 percent of food exports going to developing countries".

It said the continuation of the initiative is "crucial for global food security" as grain and fertilizer prices and availability have not returned to pre-conflict levels.

Kremlin blames 'sharp maneuver' for crash while Pentagon calls intercept 'reckless'

Russia and the United States on Wednesday offered different accounts of the downing of a US intelligence drone in the Black Sea, as the incident added to tensions between Moscow and Washington over the Ukraine crisis.

According to a Reuters report, the US military MQ-9 Reaper surveillance drone crashed on Tuesday after being intercepted by Russian fighter jets. The Pentagon said one of the Russian Su-27 jets struck the propeller of the drone, making it inoperable, a claim denied by Moscow which blamed the drone's "sharp maneuver" for the crash and said its jets did not make contact.

The downing appeared to be the first time since the height of the Cold War that a US aircraft was brought down after an encounter with a Russian warplane, The Associated Press commented.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday that relations with the US were "at their lowest point, in a very lamentable state", but Russia "has never refused constructive dialogue, and is not refusing now".

The Reaper, according to a statement by Russia's Defense Ministry on Tuesday, was flying over the Black Sea near the Crimean Peninsula and intruded in an area that was declared off limits by Russia as part of its special military operation in Ukraine, causing the military to scramble fighters to intercept it.

"As a result of a sharp maneuver, the MQ-9 drone went into unguided flight with a loss of altitude and crashed into the water," it said. "The Russian fighters didn't use their weapons, didn't come into contact with the unmanned aerial vehicle, and they safely returned to their base."

The statement insisted that Russian warplanes did not hit or cause the crash of the drone, which the Pentagon said was on a routine "intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance" mission.

The MQ-9 includes a ground control station and satellite equipment and has a 20-meter wingspan. It can be armed with Hellfire missiles as well as laser-guided bombs and can fly for more than 1,770 kilometers, the US Air Force said.

The Pentagon called the intercept "reckless and unprofessional". But spokesman Brigadier General Pat Ryder would not say whether it was armed. The US had not recovered the crashed drone, US Air Forces-Europe said in a statement, and neither had Russia, he said.

US President Joe Biden was briefed on the incident by national security adviser Jake Sullivan, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said.

He said US State Department officials would be speaking directly to their Russian counterparts and "expressing our concerns over this unsafe and unprofessional intercept".Kirby emphasized that the incident would not deter the US from continuing its missions in the area.

Also in Washington, Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov described the US drone flight as a "provocation" and argued that there was no reason for US military aircraft and warships to be near Russia's borders.

Speaking after meeting with US Assistant Secretary of State for Europe Karen Donfried, Antonov reiterated that the Russian warplanes did not hit the US drone or fire their weapons. He added that Moscow wants "pragmatic" ties with Washington.

'Diplomatic channels'

"We assume that the US will refrain from further speculation in the media and stop flights near Russian borders. We consider any action with the use of US weaponry as openly hostile," Antonov wrote on Telegram on Wednesday.

Moscow has repeatedly voiced concerns about US intelligence flights close to Crimea, which joined Russia through a referendum in 2014.

The Kremlin has charged that by providing weapons to Ukraine and sharing intelligence information with Kyiv, the US and its Western allies have effectively become engaged in the conflict.

A Western military source said diplomatic channels between Russia and the US could help limit any fallout.

"To my mind, diplomatic channels will mitigate this," the source told Agence France-Presse.

Agencies and Ren Qi in Moscow contributed to this story.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on Wednesday for an extension of a deal with Moscow that has allowed Kyiv to export grain through Black Sea ports.

After talks with Guterres in Kyiv, Zelensky said the Black Sea Grain Initiative was "critically necessary "for the world, while the UN chief underlined its importance to global food security and food prices.

The 120-day deal, initially brokered by the UN and Turkiye in July and extended in November, will be renewed on March 18 if no party objects.

"I want to underscore the critical importance of rolling over the Black Sea Grain Initiative on March 18, and working to create the conditions to enable the greatest possible use of export infrastructure through the Black Sea in line with the objectives of the initiative," Guterres told reporters in Kyiv.

Top UN trade official Rebeca Grynspan, who traveled with Guterres to the Ukrainian capital, will meet senior Russian officials in Geneva next week to discuss extending the deal, a UN spokesperson said.

Russia's demands, however, have not yet been met, said a Turkish diplomatic source, adding that Ankara was "working very hard "to ensure the deal continues.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said last Thursday that the deal was not working, as the West sabotaged Russia-related clauses of the agreements.

The ministry pointed to 262,000 metric tons of fertilizers that Russia planned to donate to the poorest countries, but ended up having them blocked in the ports of Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and the Netherlands.

US State Department spokesman Ned Price said during a regular news briefing that the US administration supports UN efforts aimed at ensuring deliveries of Russian and Ukrainian grain to international markets.

"The Black Sea Grain Initiative is a vital tool to combat global food insecurity and stabilize food prices," said Price, calling for the initiative to be "extended and expanded".

Fresh airstrikes

Separately, Russia unleashed a new wave of airstrikes across Ukraine on Thursday, killing at least six people and knocking out power at the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station.

Ukraine's military said Russia fired 81 missiles and eight drones in attacks mainly targeting energy infrastructure, and that the weapons used included six hypersonic Kinzhal missiles that Ukraine could not intercept.

It also said air defenses knocked out at least 34 missiles and four Shahed suicide drones, but regional officials said five people were killed in the western region of Lviv and one in southeastern Dnipropetrovsk.

In Kyiv, about 15 percent of the capital was without electricity following the strikes, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said earlier on Telegram.

Klitschko said that due to emergency power outages after the missile attack, 40 percent of the capital's residents were without heating.

In Moscow, President Vladimir Putin said Russia is facing direct threats to its security and sovereignty. "We see many examples of bravery and determination, courage and willingness to stand up for the truth, to protect people and the very future of our state," Putin said at a ceremony in the Kremlin to present state awards to women on International Women's Day.

Agencies contributed to this story.

renqi@chinadaily.com.cn

UNITED NATIONS - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Wednesday, a UN spokesman said.

"The secretary-general has just arrived in Poland on his way to Ukraine," said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for Guterres, in a statement issued on Tuesday.

Guterres and Zelensky will discuss the continuation of the Black Sea Grain Initiative in all its aspects, said the statement.

On July 22, 2022, Russia and Ukraine separately signed a document in Istanbul with Türkiye and the United Nations on grain and fertilizer exports from Ukraine and Russia to ensure supplies to global markets amid the Russia-Ukraine armed conflict.

The deal, due to expire on Nov. 19, 2022, was extended for another 120 days. Guterres has repeatedly called for the deal's further extension.

While in Kyiv, Guterres will also talk with Zelensky about "other pertinent issues," Dujarric said in the statement, noting that it is the UN chief's third visit to Ukraine in the last year.

Guterres will be back to the United Nations headquarters in New York Thursday, according to the statement.

KHROMOVE, Ukraine — Pressure from Russian forces mounted on Ukrainian units in Bakhmut at the weekend, with some Western analysts suggesting Kyiv may be preparing to withdraw its troops from the key eastern stronghold.

Over the past 36 hours Ukrainian fighters have destroyed two key bridges just outside Bakhmut, including one linking the city to the town of Chasiv Yar along the last remaining Ukrainian resupply route, according to British military intelligence officials and other Western observers.

The UK defense ministry said in a regular Twitter update that the destruction of the bridges came as Russian troops made inroads into the city's northern suburbs.

The Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, assessed late on Friday that Kyiv's actions may point to a looming pullout from parts of the city. It said Ukrainian troops may "conduct a limited and controlled withdrawal from particularly difficult sections "of the city while seeking to inhibit Russian movements and limit exit routes to the west.

Bakhmut has for months been a prime target of Moscow's special military operation, and its troops, including forces from the paramilitary Wagner Group, have been inching closer.

Also on the front line, top Russian commanders in Ukraine have briefed Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu on the situation and action plans, his ministry said on Sunday.

Shoigu paid a rare visit to Russia's forces deployed in Ukraine, awarding medals to military personnel and meeting commanders during the trip, according to a statement on Saturday.

In the US state of Arizona, two Ukrainian pilots have been flying flight simulators and receiving evaluations from the United States military, two US officials said on Saturday, as Washington remains silent on whether it will send fighter jets or sophisticated remotely piloted drones to Kyiv.

The US and its allies have given Ukraine weapons including Javelin missiles to HIMARS rocket launchers, but they have yet to pledge sophisticated jets and the largest armed drones.

The Arizona "familiarization event" is a first. It will facilitate dialogue between Ukrainian and US personnel and provide an opportunity to observe how the US Air Force operates, a US defense official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"This event allows us to better help Ukrainian pilots become more effective pilots and better advise them on how to develop their own capabilities," the official said.

In another development, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Sunday that Ankara is trying to extend the UN-backed initiative that has enabled Ukraine to export grain from blockaded ports.

The Black Sea Grain Initiative brokered by the UN and Turkiye in July allowed grain to be exported from three Ukrainian ports. The agreement was extended in November and will expire on March 18 unless a further extension is agreed.

Agencies via Xinhua

MOSCOW/KYIV — Russia said on Thursday it was fighting off a "terrorist attack" in the southern Bryansk region bordering Ukraine, where the local governor said a Ukrainian sabotage group had killed one person and news agencies said hostages had been taken.

Ukraine accused Russia of staging a false "provocation".

Amid reports of shelling and sporadic sabotage, Russia's border regions have become increasingly volatile since Moscow started its special military operation in Ukraine one year ago.

"We are talking about a terrorist attack. Measures are now being taken to destroy these terrorists," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

He said law enforcement agencies would determine who was responsible, and President Vladimir Putin was being briefed by security chiefs on the situation.

Russia's FSB security service said in a statement issued to Russian news agencies on Thursday that its own forces and the army were trying to liquidate what it described as "an armed group of Ukrainian nationalists" who had crossed the border.

Bryansk Governor Alexander Bogomaz said the Ukrainians had shot and killed one person.

"Today, a Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group penetrated the Klimovsky district in the village of Lubechanye," Bogomaz said on his Telegram channel.

"Saboteurs fired on a moving car. As a result of the attack, one resident was killed and a 10-year-old child was wounded."

The Russian state news agency TASS said the Ukrainians had infiltrated two villages, taking local residents hostage in one of them. The RIA news agency said several people had been taken hostage in a store in the village of Lubechanye, less than a kilometer from the border with Ukraine.

Russia has accused Ukrainian saboteurs of infiltrating Bryansk before.

Putin told the FSB this week that it needed to step up its guard against espionage and what he called terrorist threats emanating from Ukraine and the West.

Agencies Via Xinhua

The US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has paid a surprise visit to Kyiv to reaffirm support for Ukraine, and has committed to providing more than $10 billion in budget support by September.

Yellen met President Volodymyr Zelensky, Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko and other key government officials on Monday, and reiterated assurances President Joe Biden delivered in Kyiv on Feb 20.

"America will stand with Ukraine as long as it takes," Yellen, flanked by sandbags at the cabinet ministers' office, told Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal in a trip also aimed at shoring up support in the US for continued aid.

In a private meeting with Zelensky late in the afternoon, Yellen commended him "for his leadership and resolve in the face of Russia's illegal and unprovoked war".

She welcomed Zelensky's actions to strengthen governance and tackle corruption, actions she said were needed to ensure that US economic aid is spent responsibly. She reiterated the message when she met Marchenko.

Shmyhal said after talks with Yellen that the country's budget deficit this year is forecast to be $38 billion, and the US is committing to providing more than $10 billion in budget support by September.

A new platform is being introduced to help coordinate the work of the G7 countries and international financial organizations, including the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, with regard to financial support for Ukraine, Shmyhal said.

He and Yellen also discussed the impact of sanctions on the Russian budget.

"We also discussed the continuation and effectiveness of sanctions on the supply of high-tech items to be used in the military sphere of Russia," Shmyhal said.

A year after the outbreak of hostilities in Ukraine, all of Russia's critically important banks, with the exception of organizations with foreign capital, have in some way been sanctioned. The most recent sanctions include restrictions on three Russian financial institutions, Alfa-Bank, Tinkoff Bank and Rosbank.

The Russian newspaper Kommersant quoted Artyom Kasumyan, a lawyer, as saying that new restrictions do not look so bad against the backdrop of a year of sanctions pressure.

"The EU discussed the 10th package of sanctions for so long that everyone knew ahead of time who would be sanctioned. Banks had plenty of time to prepare."

Russia's Defense Ministry alleged on Tuesday that the US is planning a provocation in Ukraine using toxic chemicals.

The ministry cited John Sullivan, a former US ambassador to Russia, as saying that "Russian troops plan to use chemical weapons in the special military operation area".

Igor Kirillov, chief of radiation, chemical and biological defense troops of Russia's armed forces, said: "We regard this information as the intention of the United States and their accomplices to carry out a provocation in Ukraine using toxic chemicals."

Russia "will identify and punish the true culprits", he said.

In Finland, a parliamentary debate aimed at accelerating the country's application to join NATO was expected to begin on Tuesday.

That was to coincide with a visit by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, who was due to meet Finland's Prime Minister Sanna Marin and its President Sauli Niinisto. A final vote was expected on Wednesday.

Agencies contributed to this story.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has voiced his support for China's 12-point proposal for a political settlement in the Russia-Ukraine crisis issued on Friday, the one-year anniversary of the conflict.

In his opening speech at Parliament's spring session on Monday, Orban said "we need a cease-fire and the start of peace talks".

"I see that most states support peace, and Hungary cannot isolate itself from most of the world.… We consider China's peace plan important, and we support it," he told lawmakers.

Orban, who won a fourth consecutive term in April and is the country's longest-serving prime minister, said his government is concerned about the European Union's efforts to arm Ukraine with tanks and possibly fighter jets. He warned that "the whole of Europe is sliding step by step toward a war".

He called on the lawmakers to advocate for peace. "They want to drag us into this war, but I am calling on you not to yield to provocation," he said.

Orban has expressed his opposition to arms supplies, escalation and sanctions, posting on Twitter: "If the #RussiaUkraineWar goes on, more and more people will die. If the war goes on, the threat of hyperinflation and economic turmoil will continue to haunt us. If the war goes on, it can spread around the world. The solution:#ceasefire #PeaceTalks."

His positive response to China's position stands in contrast to comments from leaders of the United States, NATO and the European Union, who cast doubt on the proposal.

'Good' efforts

French President Emmanuel Macron has also welcomed the proposal.

"I think the fact that China is engaging in peace efforts is good. I myself will go to China in early April," he said on Saturday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said he agrees with some points in the Chinese proposal, while the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday that "any attempts to develop plans that will help transfer the conflict to a peaceful course deserve attention".

China's peace proposal for Ukraine represents the "perspective of a majority of the world's population", which nominally supports Ukrainian territorial integrity while wanting a cease-fire and an end to sanctions, Ian Bremmer, president of the Eurasia Group, a political risk consultancy in New York, tweeted on Friday.

Nathan Robinson, the New Orleans-based editor of Current Affairs magazine, said that the US claims "we follow Ukraine's lead on terms for ending the war, but Ukraine gave a positive reaction to China's peace plan while the US dismissed it". "US would prefer continuation of the conflict over a peace brokered by China," he said in a tweet on Friday.

Georgi Gotev, a former Bulgarian diplomat, and now senior editor of the Euractiv news website, wrote Monday that "if Ukraine and Russia are to end up at the negotiating table, China could indeed be a precious partner".

"It is also in the EU's interest if China could succeed, sometime soon, in bringing together interlocutors who would never sit at the same table in other circumstances," he wrote in a newsletter on China's proposal.

KYIV - The United States has provided about 50 billion US dollars in aid to Ukraine since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported Monday, citing visiting US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.

"In the field of security, economy, humanitarian and social support, we have already provided about 50 billion dollars in assistance," Yellen said after her meeting with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.

In particular, the United States has provided 14 billion dollars to support the economic resilience of Ukraine, Yellen said, noting that it plans to allocate another 8 billion dollars for the same needs in the near future.

For his part, Shmyhal said that in 2022, the United States was the top contributor of funds to the Ukrainian economy among foreign countries.

According to estimates of the Ukrainian government, the country would need 38 billion dollars in financing, including from external sources, to cover its budget deficit this year.

Ukrainians and Europeans net victims of Washington strategy, experts say

Editor's note: As Feb 24 marks the one-year anniversary of Russia's special military operation in Ukraine, China Daily is reviewing how it has reshaped geopolitics, impacted the global economy and aggravated the energy crisis.

Provocative action by the United States in the Asia-Pacific region and meddling by it and NATO in eastern Asia threaten regional stability as well as Asian and global economic growth and social development, analysts say.

Measures taken by the US and some of its NATO allies such as the United Kingdom and Canada in their so-called "Indo-Pacific strategy" are creating instability in the region, including leading Japan and South Korea on a path of militarism, with more frequent joint drills, the analysts said.

Karori Singh, emeritus fellow and former director of the South Asia Studies Center at the University of Rajasthan in Jaipur, India, said one manifestation of this is multilayered alliances, such as the Five Eyes, which groups the US, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, and the more recently established AUKUS, comprising Australia, the UK and the US. Another recently formed group, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, commonly known as the Quad, consists of Australia, India, Japan and the US. One aim of the Quad and NATO is to involve Japan and South Korea in military programs, Singh said.

In addition, AUKUS is trying to lure Pacific island countries with the offer of development and security aid, he said. "In reality, the search for regional security and development through such measures is bound to breed insecurity and restrict development."

Even some US allies are unhappy with what is going on, Singh said.

"Recent Nord Stream revelations are an alarm bell for the Europeans," he said, referring to allegations by the US investigative journalist Seymour Hersh that the US had had a hand in explosions in the Nord Stream gas pipelines in September.

Ukrainians and Europeans are "the net victims of US strategy", Singh said.

Moreover, demonstrations in Paris and Berlin in recent days and in Washington earlier represent "rage against the war machine" and show that people in the West are against US policies, he said.

Yoichi Komori, an emeritus professor at the University of Tokyo, said the US and NATO are using Japan as a shield in case of conflict. "It's very dangerous for Japan to give full play to its Self-Defense Forces in East Asia, which is also contrary to Article 9 of Japan's Constitution. We, the people, must not allow it."

Shakeel Ahmad Ramay, chief executive of the Asian Institute of Eco-civilization Research and Development in Islamabad, Pakistan, said the peaceful rise of China is a constant irritant for the US and its allies.

"After some failures including 'debt trap' accusations, they have reverted back to the alliance building mentality of the Cold War era," he said.

The US had persuaded Japan to depart from its post-World War II policy of defense, he said. Then the US extended defense measures with the Philippines, including opening four new bases close and upgrading others.

Shigeki Nagayama, a professor of law at Tokai University in Tokyo, said: "The Japanese government has invited NATO to get involved in the Asia-Pacific region to enhance its own defense capability, and that will only destabilize the region."

Kazuyuki Hamada, president of the Research Institute for Future Technologies in Tokyo, and former parliamentary vice-minister for foreign affairs, said Japan's proposal for "an Asian NATO" or "a global NATO" runs counter to the zeitgeist.

"Japan's advocacy and the realization of it is nothing more than going against the post-Cold War era. This unnecessarily intensifies the arms race and reduces the value of diplomacy."

Mustafa Hyder Sayed, executive director of the Pakistan-China Institute in Islamabad, said the consistent pattern of the US seeking to create an Asian copy of NATO reflects the objectives in the NATO 2030 agenda that the military alliance published earlier.

However, such a Cold War mentality threatens regional stability and the development of the Asia-Pacific, the world's most robust growth engine, he said. "The hegemony of the US and its allies cannot continue to prevail in the post-pandemic world order, where collective wisdom, cooperation and connectivity is required to build bridges rather than create walls between countries."

The US and its allies must try to understand that China seeks peaceful coexistence, is integrated deeply in global development, and is the chief engine of world growth through programs such as the Belt and Road Initiative and the Global Security Initiative, Ramay said. "The US and its allies should say goodbye to their hegemonic, confrontational and Cold War mentality."

A peaceful demonstration against the war and NATO took place in Brussels, Belgium on Sunday. Demonstrators called for peace and solidarity in Europe to end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. People were blaming NATO and the United States for escalating the tensions.