Russia has captured about 80 to 90 percent of the territory in the past four years. Russia is demanding that Ukrainian forces leave the remaining territory to end the war.
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The second round of talks between Russia and Ukraine has begun in the UAE. The US is mediating these talks.
The Ukrainian delegation is led by National Security Council Secretary Rustam Umerov in the talks aimed at ending the nearly four-year-old war. He announced the start of the talks in Abu Dhabi on social media . The talks will last two days.
Russia launched a drone attack on the Ukrainian city of Vyborg on Tuesday. “They are betting on war and destroying Ukraine. They are not taking diplomacy seriously,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday.
The first round of talks was held in the UAE last month. This was the first time that representatives of Russia and Ukraine had come face to face at the negotiating table since the war began. Although many issues were agreed upon in the talks, there was no agreement on the border area.
Donbass region at the center of the dispute
The dispute over the Donbas region had become the most complicated. Russia has occupied about 80 to 90 percent of the territory in the past four years. Russia is demanding that the remaining territory be left by the Ukrainian army to end the war. Of the two provinces in the Donbass region, Russia currently controls almost all of Luhansk and about 70 percent of Donetsk.
The Russian army is fighting Ukraine to move forward from this. Putin has been saying that if Ukraine does not leave these territories, Russia will occupy them by force.
Ukraine has said that handing over its territory is impossible. One of the various plans put forward by the US was that the future of the region could be determined through a referendum. Similarly, last December, the US proposed that a free economic zone could be developed in the Donbass territory, which is under Ukrainian control.
Ukraine has put forward the demand for security guarantees from its European allies and the US in the peace talks.
Why is the Donbass important?
Russia has been waging a military intervention here since 2014 and in 2022 it declared war on the region. This region on the Sea of Azov includes two of Ukraine's 24 oblasts (provinces) (Donetsk and Luhansk).
About 75 percent of Donetsk and 70 percent of Luhansk are Russian-speaking. Coal reserves, fertile arable land, and mineral deposits are the characteristics of this region. Large quantities of wheat, rice, sunflowers, and corn are produced here. This has made Ukraine one of the largest global exporters of food.
In the 20th century, there were a large number of Ukrainian industries in this region. The region was especially known for its steel production.
