Canada's unannounced Kyiv visit and stalled peace talks, 9 May 2022
A look back at the diplomatic backdrop to 9 May 2022, after a Canadian delegation reached Kyiv and both sides set out terms for talks.
What was the diplomatic picture in the Russo-Ukrainian war on 9 May 2022? It was shaped by a visit to Kyiv, competing statements on negotiations and new Russian economic measures, all reported in the days before.
On 8 May 2022, Canada's Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland and Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly made an unannounced visit to Kyiv. They met President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as the Russian invasion continued.
Peace talks were a live question. On 3 May, Russian President Vladimir Putin told French President Emmanuel Macron that Russia was ready to continue negotiations with Ukraine, amid fears that talks between the two countries had stalled.
On 6 May, Zelenskyy said Ukraine was open to continuing talks if Russia guaranteed the restoration of preinvasion borders, returned Ukrainians forcibly evacuated to Russia and withdrew its troops from the country.
On the economic front, Putin signed a decree on 3 May allowing the Russian government to terminate business and exports with entities and people it deemed "unfriendly".
