The Russian invasion. The outside world's response

 

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. AP  

 

The Russian invasion. The outside world's response  

China wants to deepen cooperation with Russia next year  

 

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi defends the country's position regarding the war in Ukraine and at the same time signals that it wants to strengthen ties with Russia in the coming year, AP reports. 

 

- China will deepen the strategic and mutual trust and beneficial cooperation with Russia, Wang said during a video speech at a conference in the Chinese capital Beijing on Sunday.  

 

China has so far refused to condemn the invasion of Ukraine and impose sanctions on Russia, arguing that it wants to remain "impartial and objective" in the conflict.  

 

The foreign minister also accused the United States of pursuing "wrong China policy" which led to the deterioration of the relationship between the countries.  

 

 

Russian President Vladimir Putin. AP  

 

Russian invasionRussian reactions  

Putin: "It is not us who refuse to negotiate"  

 

Vladimir Putin is ready to negotiate with all parties involved in the war in Ukraine, but Kyiv and its Western supporters have refused to come to the negotiating table. This is what the Russian president says in a statement to state Russian media, Reuters reports. 

 

- We are ready to negotiate with all involved on acceptable solutions, but it is up to them - it is not us who refuse to negotiate, Putin said in the interview broadcast on Rossiya 1 on Sunday.  

 

There is still no end in sight for the war. The Kremlin has said it will not stop fighting until all its goals are achieved, while Kyiv refuses to lay down its arms until all Russian troops are expelled from Ukrainian territory - including Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014. 

 

 

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenksy AP  

 

Russian invasionUkraine's response  

Zelensky in Christmas speech: "We create our own miracles"  

 

Many Ukrainians will face Christmas in captivity, says Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksy in a Christmas greeting, BBC reports.  

 

- But let them know that we will bring home all ours, we will give freedom to all Ukrainian men and women, he says. 

 

Zelenksyj goes on to urge Ukrainians to celebrate Christmas as usual, to laugh and be happy. As previously. 

 

- There is only one thing that is different. We will not wait for a miracle. After all, we can create our own miracles, says Zelensky. 

 

Most Ukrainians are Orthodox Christians and celebrate Christmas on January 6, just like Russia. But a growing number have switched to celebrating the holiday on December 25 instead, the BB