Kishida arrives in Ukraine as Putin meets Xi; Battle for Bakhmut rages on

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida arrived in Kyiv for a surprise visit on Tuesday at the heels of Chinese President Xi Jinping meeting Russia's Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Kishida is expected to offer continuing support for Ukraine during his meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky, and Putin and Xi discussed Beijing's peace plan for Ukraine. These meetings come amid the ongoing 13-month-old battle at Ukraine's border regions, including in the eastern town of Bakhmut, where both sides have launched counter-offensives and are engaged in fierce fighting, as per reports.  ...read more

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Published on Mar 21, 2023 06:08 PM IST

Ukrainian servicemen seen firing an S60 anti-aircraft gun at Russian positions near Bakhmut on March 20. The months-long battle for Bakhmut has become one of the bloodiest of Russia's nearly 13-month-old war in Ukraine. While it is uncertain whether either meeting would change the course of the war, the talks, about 800 kilometers apart, highlight the war’s repercussions for international diplomacy as countries line up behind rival parties. (Aris Messinis / AFP)

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Local resident Volodymyr Alipov, 58, is seen with a dog among the remains of his house destroyed by an airstrike last year during Russia's attack in the village of Tsyrkuny, Kharkiv region, on March 20, In early March, the government issued an order for the compulsory evacuation of families with children from combat areas.(Sofiia Gatilova / REUTERS)

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Local residents Svitlana Mazurina and her son Oleksii seen during an evacuation drive by Ukrainian police in Avdiivka, on March 17, “It’s hard when you’ve lived in this town from birth,” Svitlana told AP. Before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, about 25,000 people lived in Avdiivka. Despite the shelling, about 2,000 civilians remain,(Evgeniy Maloletka / AP)

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A man seen riding his bicycle in front of a destroyed apartment building after a Russian strike in Avdiivka, Donetsk Oblast, on March 18. For months, authorities have been urging civilians in areas near the fighting to evacuate to safer parts of the country. But while many have heeded the call, others — including families with children — have steadfastly refused. (Aris Messinis / AFP)

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This picture from March 20 shows traditional Russian wooden nesting dolls, called Matryoshka dolls, depicting Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin at a gift shop in central Moscow. The Kremlin said that the leaders held a "thorough" exchange of views during their first day of talks and had discussed Beijing's peace plan for Ukraine- a 12-point paper calling for a de-escalation and eventual ceasefire in Ukraine, Reuters reported. ( Natalia Kolesnikova / AFP)

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A Ukrainian serviceman is seen in the town of Chasiv Yar as smoke rises from the direction of Bakhmut on March 20. The head of Russia's Wagner mercenary group said that his forces control more than half of Bakhmut. Meanwhile, Ukraine said that Russian cruise missiles were destroyed in a blast on the Crimean peninsula that was annexed by Moscow in 2014, but denied responsibility for the "mysterious" incident. (Aris Messinis / AFP)

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A Ukrainian serviceman is seen shooting down a drone with his rifle, near Bakhmut, on March 20. Russia has made the capture of Bakhmut a priority in its strategy to take control of Ukraine's Donbas industrial region. If Russian forces capture Bakhmut, it will be Moscow's first significant territorial gain since last summer, Reuters reported. (Aris Messinis / AFP)

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Japanese PM Fumio Kishida, who arrived in Ukraine for a meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, is expected to offer continuing support for Ukraine. This comes as two Russian strategic bomber planes flew over the Sea of Japan for more than seven hours, Japan has contributed more than $7 billion to Ukraine, and accepted more than 2,000 displaced Ukrainians. (Yoshikazu Tsuno and Ludovic MARIN / various sources / AFP)