ah, ah ah, this is dw news live from berlin, russia claims it will radically reduce military activity around keith and chinese in ukraine. it's a sign of potential progress in peace talks held in turkey. ukraine says it could adopt neutral status in exchange for security guarantees. a meeting between rushes and ukraine's leaders is also on the table. also coming up, ukraine says it forces have retake and a key town near the capital. keep that ukraine's president warms russian troops. i'll regrouping to seize it back and elsewhere. the country continues to suffer.

heavy damage. ah, i manuscripts mckinnon. thanks so much for joining us. russia says it has decided to dramatically reduce military activity in northern ukraine, including around the capsule. keith rushes, deputy defense minister alexander for mean made the remarks following a new round of peace talks with ukraine. in istanbul, he said, russia had made the decision to increase mutual trust. i had a future negotiations. tuesdays gathering was the 1st face to face meeting in more than 2 weeks. guarantees for ukraine security were on the table along with the possibility of keep agreeing to long term military neutrality. that cross straight to a correspondent, dorian jones. in istanbul, dorian turkeys,

foreign minister said that the 2 sides made the most meaningful progress since the start of the negotiations. are these talks in istanbul today, would you say that that's a fair assessment? well, to be on, it doesn't take much her to achieve that goal. given the fact that so little has been achieved in the previous negotiations. but having said that, it does appear that the 2 delegations really did engage in key issues that need to be resolved for any hope of peace. the question of russia's demand on that ukraine become neutral, i was told, was discussed, along with ukraine's calls for security guarantees. talk of 8 countries providing that security guarantee, including poland, israel and turkey. it's unclear over those countries would be prepared to sign up to such an agreement, but it's a sign that the sides are talking. also the question about the break away republics of law hands went on boss and the annex crimea was also a key issue that was discuss a possible, talked possible compromise. was an ukranian suggestion that you,

cro crimea could possibly be the subject of a 15 year long consultation period, although that is linked to the end of it all hostilities. so that is a sign that 2 sides are engaging in key issues that are needed to be resolved. but at the end of the day, it all depends what happens in the conflict on the ground. at the moment it appears that ukraine has fought the russians to a standstill. there is his, ah, ah, uneasy or our balance of power at the moment with that continues will be key to whether this continued progress on these de go stations are continues. there are a good amount covered today, obviously better the next step. how likely is it that the ukrainian and russian presidents might nice air in person any time saying while that really is key to resolving this conflicts on both sides. i think do recognize that while the ukrainian president of altamira zalinski has been calling for direct talks with res, rushing counterpart vladimir putin, even before russia invaded,

are russia for now that lease is ruling out any talk saying that they can only happen when there are tangible issues to be discuss where there is a potential agreement can be reached. now that's where these negotiations at the moment are so important and whether they continue, whether they can bring some kind of framework in which the president can come together at the moment is unclear whether there will be further talks. but the turkish foreign ministry are saying that their next goal is to bring the russian and earned the ukrainian foreign ministers together. they met early this month. nothing happened that, that talked. but the hope is that these 6, these talks, which are seen as being positive, the, whether these form, if they can get together, can continue this progress. and at the end of the layout of framework, which can bring the 2 presidents together. now we've heard that the ministry of defense, or of the russian federation says that it will fundamentally cut back military activity in northern ukraine. can we see this as a sign that russia is ready to step back to a certain extent?

well, i think it all depends whether this happens on what does russia mean by significant drawbacks? very ambiguous words here. it's expect that people will be looking specially ukraine, weathered russia, matches these words with positive action. if it does that, than this will certainly be seen, probably the most positive concrete outcome of these talks in his sample. and that will lay the basis for possible future talks and ultimately the meeting of the, to present, and a hope of bringing some kind of piece to the end of this conflict. but it's still a long way to go. and people are still very nervous whether this progress that we've it possibly cheating tuesday as tuesdays towards can be sustained during janes in istanbul. thank you. and we can talk now to stefan meister. he is with the german council on foreign relations and an expert in russian security and foreign policy. mr. my, so welcome to d. w. now russia says it's scaling back operations in order to create an atmosphere of trust. can we really be sure that these piece talks are happening in good faith?

i think it is. first of all are a strategic move from the russian side term to, to create options under the whole war. it's not, not going how are putting and russian leadership has lantus war and it needs a kind of an option to, to have to declare a weak dory and it could be about eastern or crane, but i think there is no trust. yeah, i think there's no trust at all the russian leadership wasn't taking, or russia wasn't checking or crying. it was lying several times on on what are the goals? it was changing also rhetorically, it's goals. so i think we have to wait until we can read this or can really assess what this this move now really means could we see it as some kind of positive step or should we remain complaining his suspicious what the russians are saying? no, i think it's,

it's the most positive step we have seen in all this war and i think are we clearly understand that that russia has high loss also of material enough people and it can on wind this war. yeah. and it might stack or for long enough grain. so i think there might be a step out, a whole grain in terms of just keeping a part of it and then maybe move later to key again. but i think t t f is for the time being, not the main target off the russian attack, and that's, that's already positive. and we're hearing talk of the idea of a neutral ukraine. do you see person except thing and you trill ukraine and wouldn't neutral ukraine in fact, ever be enough that to 10 and his ambitions the question is what neutral grain means? he also i think we don't don't talk about austria. yeah. in terms of start to spot is it is about a lack of 70 yahoo, crazy. nope, no,

not joining any military alliance and not really having security guarantees, but always being threatened also by russia need need also to take into consideration russian interests ya. so i think that's in your trailer to you russia thinking about and if these kind of an a t shirt mortality is acceptable for crane, then i think there might be an agreement. yeah, but i think for me this is an arthur msm. herb was what god rush leadership is using, which is no trial a teacher. so it's really about the conditions. and let's talk about the, the, the talks that have been taking place. and in istanbul today, can you describe turkeys, role and will of this advantage on the other one is that he's, he's, he's country is natal member. and at the same time, he has a good relationship with mr. 14, he lost these kind of diplomatic formats and he's really, it's really upgrading him also his role in europe in security. at the same time,

turkey has really direct interests. it has interest on, on stability and security, and black c reaching has like a moment. interest russians are a major part of tourist, also traveling through to jerky ya. so i think there are, there are several issues. turkey has read direct interests and i think this sense it makes sense. yeah. that, that other one is providing just platform. so stefan mike, that was the chairman council on foreign relations. thanks so much. you're welcome . now on the ground in ukraine, the situation is a mixed picture. tens of thousands of civilians are main trapped in di humanitarian conditions in the besieged, poor city of mario pole. and in the southern city of nikolai, of several people were put, had killed when a russian miss style hit a regional government building dozens more wounded, but ukrainian forces for that part all recapturing territory from the russian addresses. we can cross to a key of correspondence. now, nick conley, nick,

you're in the ukrainian capital. can you tell us how ukrainians are reacting to the peace talks that have been happening in istanbul today? i think the route is that most people here in care of and elsewhere ukraine are not following these talks in any great detail. there's been a lot of diplomatic noise in recent weeks. i think people here are waiting for actions and for a noticeable change to what the russians are doing in the immediate vicinity. and i think the most important thing, though, you hear time time again for people that they might be willing to compromise on ukraine's aspirations. join nato, but accepting russian control of antics, crimea, or recognizing those self proclaimed public cielo hunts convenience. can the east that is very definitely a red line for most ukrainians you speak to even more so after the losses and the suffering from the last few weeks. our colleagues in the west, the city of la beef, spoke to people about their impressions. over these talks, let's have a listen to what they have to say. no, it's not sonya serrato and join nato,

but it's necessary. ah, western countries supply and some weapons for us. so to will her help us to, to win this war a more quicker. it's not about anita by itself. it's said more about freedom of choice, which of course sell ukrainian one to have because every county air has arrived, which is for so i think nobody should tell us a independent country what we should do or not to do as an ascent or no septa bell in any case, ice in atlantic, russia is saying it will scale back facing around keith. can you tell us more about that? well seen from kiki, from the ukranian side, this is definitely looks like a russian attempt to put a brave face on some pretty crushing defeats of russian forces here surrounding a key of who seemingly had planned to take the training capitol within

a matter of days and that just didn't happen. time time again, we were told the kid would fall within a matter of days and ukrainian forces were able to hold up that advance. now most recently we've had news from it appears that town west of ki, about 25 kilometers as the crow flies from where i am. now. most people have seen those images of the destroyed bridge and civilians trying to get out clambering over those ruins. lots zillions lost their lives trying to get out in the shelling and it now seems like the ukrainian forces have been able to regain control of that town. on the other side of care to the east of the river. ne pro, again, it seems like the cranes be able to push back russian forces by quite some way. so this seems like an attempt by the russians to regroup, to bring their troops back together again in on the territory. beller was about a 100 clubs north of here, and to send them east towards the don bass, where the russian forces seemingly have a better chance of making ground. and to sell this now as a kind of diplomatic gesture, or some kind of concession, maybe to the west and to ukraine, but little belief here. and you can at least that this is somehow, am motivated by

a desire to deescalate and what about progress in evacuating sir civilians from areas that have seen particularly heavy russian bombardments such as the mario pl. well exactly, that is still the biggest most painful spot for most ukrainians who are probably watching what's going on my report and other parts of the front much more closely than they are. talks like resort st. assemble. it doesn't seem like the big issue that we heard and on my call, trying to propose some kind of humanitarian mission to get people out doesn't seem like that is going to work any time soon. incredibly intense fighting still going on. we believe about a $100000.00 civilians are still stocks about a quarter of the pre war population. the city is very hard to actually find out what's going on the ground because for most of the day they don't have electricity . there. ukrainian mobile phone networks not working. so any satellite phones are working, but definitely a sense that this is increasingly desperate to people. still. there were getting reports from the ukrainian side of russian soldiers forcing ukrainian civilians to

evacuate in the direction of russia, trying to take their ukraine documents off them at the ukrainian reading of that would be that russia is trying to create images of civilians being looked after. by russia to at tried detoxify the can international image that russia has been picked up in recent weeks. but he's very difficult to find out what is going on except from people who've got out and have told of their experiences stuck in sellers for days at a time or bodies left on buried in the streets and people going hungry italians, nick conley and cave. thanks. so much you're watching d. w news coming up next in d, w. news, asia, why australia, new zealand are concerned about a potential chinese military base on the nearby solomon islands. and the russians in taiwan, rethinking that future following that country's invasion of you cried. those stories, animals with their ash vanity coming up in just a few moments. now,

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