Josep Borrell, the European Union's top diplomat, says Russia is stalling in talks on a cease-fire in Ukraine and won't take the discussions seriously until it has reached its goals with its unprovoked invasion.
In an interview with Spain's TVE broadcast on March 24, Borrell said Russian President Vladimir Putin has his eyes on surrounding the Black Sea coast to the border with Moldova in order to isolate Ukraine from the water.
"Right now, Russia doesn't want to sit and negotiate anything. What it wants is to occupy the ground," Borrell said. "It wants to negotiate in earnest only when it has secured a position of strength."
Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine on February 24. While it has moved on fronts mainly in the north and east, the fiercest battles so far have been over the port city of Mariupol, with Ukrainian forces putting up stiff resistance.
Taking control of the city of some 400,000 would give Russia a land link between Crimea -- which Moscow seized in 2014 – and territory controlled by Kremlin-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine.
Residents of Mariupol, tens of thousands of whom have yet to escape the besieged city, have been trapped for weeks with dwindling basic supplies, such as water, food, and fuel. At least 2,300 people have died, some buried in mass graves, authorities have said.