INTERNATIONAL: The Russia-Ukraine conflict have continued Sunday while a member of the Russian delegation said the negotiations with Ukraine have made "considerable progress".
The two sides have held three rounds of talks so far and agreed on establishing humanitarian corridors, they made latest developments of the situation.
A Russian delegate to Ukraine said "there has been considerable progress since the Russia-Ukraine talks began.
The report cited Russian negotiator Leonid Slutsky, who said talks with Ukraine may soon produce draft agreements. "It may be possible to reach a joint position between the two delegations soon," said the official.
Ukrainian negotiator and presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak on Sunday has also said he thought progress could be made at talks with Russia in the coming days as the Russian side had become more constructive.
Russian President Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Saturday and have urged them to influence the Kiev authorities to stop "criminal acts" of Ukrainian "nationalist battalions," according to the Kremlin.
Macron and Scholz have urged an immediate ceasefire and a diplomatic solution to the conflict in Ukraine, the German government said in a statement, noting the 75-minute talk as part of the ongoing international efforts to end the conflict.
Zelensky has said on Saturday that NATO members are lacking courage and consensus on whether to accept Ukraine.
The current conflict in Ukraine has not been easy for Russian financial institutions. Still, the country's capital reserves have made it possible for banks under severe restrictions to function.
Russia has established an online trading platform "Import Substitution Exchange" to enable direct interactions between manufacturing companies in Russia and customers. There are enough component manufacturers in Russia who are willing to provide products to the domestic market to repair the supply chain that has been suspended by sanctions.
The Russian Central Bank on Saturday said it will not resume trading on the Moscow Exchanges from March 14 to 18, which will extend the market closure since Feb 28 to a third week.
Nearly 125,000 people have been evacuated via humanitarian corridors from conflict zones in Ukraine, Zelensky has said in a video address on Sunday.
The Russian military said Saturday that the humanitarian situation is deteriorating quickly in Ukraine and has become catastrophic in several cities.
Mikhail Mizintsev, head of the Russian National Defense Control Center, has accused Ukrainian "nationalists" of laying mines in residential areas and destroying key infrastructure.
