Russia-Ukraine live updates: Invasion meets fierce resistance; high-stakes talks on Belarus border set to begin

MOSCOW — As casualties in Russia’s invasion mounted and tensions between the Kremlin and NATO escalated dangerously, Russian and Ukrainian delegations were due to hold talks about the conflict in southern Belarus near the Ukrainian border Monday, according to the office of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Zelensky’s office said on the Telegram app that his delegation included Minister of Defense Oleksii Reznikov, a close adviser to the president and the deputy foreign minister. “The key issue of the negotiations is an immediate ceasefire and the withdrawal of troops from the territory of Ukraine,” Zelensky’s office said.

The Kremlin had said it was willing to talk — on the condition that Ukraine “demilitarize and denazify,” making it clear it expected Ukraine’s capitulation. A Russian delegation member, lawmaker Leonid Slutsky, said Sunday that Russia was “quite uncompromising in our position” and expected swift agreement from Ukraine.

Along with accepting the loss of the eastern Donbas region, recognized as two independent states by Russian President Vladimir Putin a week ago, Putin has demanded that Ukraine end its hopes of joining NATO, remove all its weapons and recognize Crimea as part of Russia.

The planned start of the talks was delayed several times for logistical reasons related to the travel of the Ukrainian delegation, according to the leader of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky. The Ukrainian delegation was flying to the talks on a helicopter provided by Poland, according to Belarusian state news agency BeITA. “We are interested in reaching some kind of agreement as soon as possible,” Medinsky said.

A day earlier, Zelensky expressed pessimism about the talks, saying said he did “not really believe in the outcome of this meeting” but said it was important that, as president, he tried to stop the war.

The talks came with Russia’s ruble crashing and uncertainty about the rapidly unfolding impact on its economy. Putin cited Western sanctions and “aggressive” statements Sunday when he put his nuclear forces on alert.

Ukraine has asked to join the European Union under a special procedure, according to a video message posted by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday.

“We appeal to the European Union for the urgent accession of Ukraine [under] a new special procedure,” he says in the video.

We are grateful to our partners for being with us,” he continued. “But our goal is to be together with all Europeans and, most importantly, to be on an equal footing. I’m sure it’s fair. I’m sure we earned it. I’m sure it’s possible.”

In recent days, the 27-member bloc has made a series of dramatic moves to back Ukraine and isolate Russia, including financing the sale and delivery of weapons to Kyiv, blocking Russian planes from E.U. skies, and a series of tough economic measures.

In an interview with Euronews on Monday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen again voiced support, saying Ukraine is “one of us and we want them in the European Union.”

However, von der Leyen did not offer details on if or how Ukraine might join — nor have other senior officials.

An estimated 422,000 Ukrainians have fled their homeland, and more than 300 people have been injured since Russia’s attack began last week, Michelle Bachelet, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, said Monday during the opening session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva.

Bachelet said that while 102 lives had been lost to the conflict, she feared the real death toll was “considerably higher.”

“Most of these civilians were killed by explosive weapons with a wide impact area, including shelling from heavy artillery and multi-launch rocket systems, and airstrikes,” she said.

In opening remarks, Ukraine’s ambassador to the U.N., Yevheniia Filipenko, said Russia’s invasion was “unprovoked and unjustified.”

“It was not just an attack on Ukraine, it was an attack on every U.N. member state, on the United Nations and on the principles that this organization was created to defend,” Filipenko said.

Monday’s meeting saw Ukraine urgently call for an emergency debate on the crisis later this week, a motion that was granted after 29 votes in favor (including the United States), five against (including Russia and China) and 13 abstentions.

KHARKIV, Ukraine — For Ukrainians, Kharkiv is a city known for poetry, art, trade, industry, scientific discovery — and now as a linchpin in the fight for Ukraine’s future.

A mere 25 miles from Russia, Ukraine’s second-largest city has faced some of the fiercest battles since Russian troops, tanks and warplanes pushed across the border Thursday. In the fog of war, there is no official casualty count for Kharkiv, where playgrounds and apartment buildings have been hit.

Russian forces briefly took control Sunday of the city of 1.5 million people, only to be expelled by Ukrainian fighters hours later in what has been an unexpectedly strong show of resistance marking the initial phase of Russia’s invasion.

But Moscow is unlikely to abandon its assault on Kharkiv, a predominantly Russian-speaking city that has become central to Russia’s advance beyond the east, especially as it faces setbacks in taking the capital, Kyiv.

Ukrainian forces continue to stymie Russia’s advance toward major cities Monday, allowing local governments to resume some level of normal activity, at least temporarily. Russian forces remained about 19 miles to the north of Kyiv, according to the British government. Ukrainian forces have managed to hold on to the airfield at Hostomel, a key strategic priority for the Russian advance.

The British Ministry of Defense said that heavy fighting continued around the cities of Kharkiv and Chernihiv, but that both cities remained in Ukrainian hands. It credited “staunch Ukrainian resistance” for the slow pace of the Russian campaign, which had been predicted to take the capital within days.

Ukrainian officials hailed their success so far but said they expected the fight to continue as delegations from Ukraine and Russia prepared to meet in Belarus. “The Russian occupiers have reduced the pace of the offensive, but are still trying to develop success in some areas in the offensive against Ukraine,” the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said in a statement Monday.

Kyiv’s municipal government reported a relatively calm night Sunday and early Monday, with the exception of isolated skirmishes that it blamed on Russian “sabotage and reconnaissance groups.”

The city advised residents to stay home unless they urgently needed to buy food or visit a pharmacy but also said grocery stores and the transit system would open for business Monday. Trains would run on a reduced schedule. The government warned that residents who ventured out after being restricted to their homes for more than a day should brace for a city getting on its war footing. “You’ll see fortifications, tank traps, and other defensive structures that have appeared on the streets of Kyiv,” the statement said.

Residents continued to leave major population centers for safer locations in the western parts of Ukraine or in neighboring countries. In Kyiv, officials have set up a humanitarian relief center in the central rail station to facilitate crowds boarding trains offering assistance to those staying. The center, staffed by more than 60 volunteers who speak multiple languages, features two warming centers, a field kitchen and psychological counseling, according to Ukrainian media.

In Kharkiv, there were long lines at grocery stores Monday morning, with dozens waiting to enter one store. But few cars or pedestrians were to be seen, as artillery explosions could be heard close to downtown. The highways leaving the city were moving smoothly, although some drivers were speeding and seemed to be near panic. One man was heard yelling at other vehicles to go faster. Military checkpoints had been set up on main routes, where the evidence of recent shelling was obvious.

SEOUL — South Korea is tightening export controls against Russia as part of international moves to impose economic costs on the country over Moscow’s decision to invade Ukraine.

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry on Monday said the country is banning exports of strategic items while reviewing possible measures for nonstrategic items. Seoul will also join in blocking Russian banks from the SWIFT global payment system, the ministry said, along with the United States, Europe and Japan.

“The South Korean government condemned Russia’s armed invasion of Ukraine and, as a responsible member of the international community, decided to actively participate in the international community’s efforts including economic sanctions in order for a peaceful resolution of the situation,” the ministry said in a statement.

The Korean government will pursue the additional release of its strategic oil reserves to address disruptions in international energy markets, according to the statement.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Monday told his aides to “participate in international sanctions against Russia while arranging firm solutions to possible problems that emerge due to the sanctions,” according to spokesman Park Kyung-mi. Moon also called on aides to take steps to boost humanitarian assistance to Ukraine.

At the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday night, celebrities from Lady Gaga to Ariana DeBose shared support for Ukraine, while Andrew Garfield noted it was “a pretty tricky day to celebrate.”

“It’s weird, it’s definitely odd that we are dressing up in this moment,” he told Laverne Cox, host of E!’s red carpet, adding that everyone was “keeping what’s happening in Ukraine in our hearts.”

Cox, who started the pre-show by saying she was praying for the safety of “our friends in Ukraine,” agreed. “Hopefully this can be an escape, too; hopefully our work and our art can be an escape for people in these very trying times,” she said. Elsewhere, Tyler Perry and Michael Douglas attached blue and yellow ribbons to their suits to show solidarity with the colors of the Ukrainian flag, and Lisa Ann Walter wore blue and yellow flowers on her dress.

After the show began, Brian Cox took the microphone when “Succession” won for best ensemble in a drama series, and he praised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as a “wonderful comic performer.” (Zelensky was a comic actor before he became president.) Cox urged the Hollywood stars to support Russian actors who are against the invasion and face consequences for speaking up. “They are told under pain of high treason that they cannot say a word about Ukraine, and I think that is pretty awful,” he said. “And I think we should all stand together.”

Michael Keaton also called out Zelensky in his acceptance speech for “Dopesick”: “I will tell you, we have a fellow actor in Zelensky who deserves some credit tonight for fighting the fight.”