What happened on 2 March 2022 in Ukraine's war diplomacy

What did the politics of the war look like on 2 March 2022? Mostly a contest of appeals: Ukraine pressed for a ceasefire and closer ties with Europe, while opponents of the invasion inside Russia were urged onto the streets.

On 2 March 2022, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny called for more anti-war protests in Russia and across the world, as well as protests against President Vladimir Putin.

Talks and mediation

The diplomatic track had opened days earlier. On 28 February, Ukrainian presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak announced that peace talks had begun, and Ukraine called for a ceasefire during them. The same day, the office of French President Emmanuel Macron said that in a phone call Putin had confirmed his willingness to make commitments to stop attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure and to secure major roadways.

On 1 March, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba asked China to help mediate a ceasefire. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi replied that China was ready to help Russia and Ukraine reach an agreement and mediate a ceasefire. China had also expressed regret for the conflict.

Turning towards the European Union

Ukraine's European ambitions moved quickly in the same days. On 28 February, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed an application for Ukraine to join the European Union. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that Ukraine should eventually join the EU, calling it one of us and saying the EU wanted to see it in the European family. On 1 March, the European Parliament formally accepted Ukraine's application for EU membership.

Military support from European states was also in the news. On 28 February, Ukrainian Air Force pilots began arriving in Poland to take control of fighter aircraft donated by EU countries. The Ukrainian government said the EU was handing over 70 fighter jets, including 28 MiG-29s from Poland, 12 from Slovakia, 16 from Bulgaria and 14 Sukhoi Su-25s from Bulgaria. Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov said he had rejected the request. EU security chief Josep Borrell later clarified that any donations were made bilaterally by individual member states rather than by the EU itself.

Sanctions and security claims

On 1 March, Andorran Prime Minister Xavier Espot announced he would send urgent legislation to parliament on Wednesday so the General Council could approve a framework for economic sanctions on Russia. The law would freeze the bank assets of 700 people and 50 companies that the EU considers linked to the invasion. It would be the first time Andorra had applied sanctions to a foreign country.

There were also contested claims on the ground. A senior Ukrainian territorial defence official said on 1 March that Belarusian Ground Forces units had entered northern Chernihiv Oblast. The Ukrainian presidential office said there was no evidence of this, and Belarus had previously said it would not send its armed forces to Ukraine. Separately, according to Ukrainian intelligence information, Ukrainian forces foiled an assassination plot against Zelenskyy by killing a group of Chechen paramilitaries known as Kadyrovtsy, who had tried to enter Kyiv on 26 February.

Taken together, the reports around 2 March 2022 show a conflict being fought in parallel on several fronts: in negotiations, in European institutions, in sanctions law and, as Navalny urged, in public opinion.