Day 614 of the Invasion of Ukraine: Many Delegates came to Malta for the Peace Plan Talks

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Day 614 of the invasion of Ukraine. Summary of key events in the last 24 hours:

• A record number of delegates came to Malta for the talks on the Ukraine peace plan
• Russia said it shot down eight Ukrainian missiles fired in the direction of Crimea
• "Since the morning, Russian terrorists have been shelling Odesa region with rockets," said the chairman of the Odesa regional military administration
• The attack on the airport in Dagestan was the result of "external interference", the Kremlin said
• Russia is ready to discuss "post-conflict resolution" of Ukraine crisis, "coexistence" with West

A record number of delegates came to Malta for the talks on the Ukraine peace plan

The third round of the Ukraine-backed peace talks took place in Malta on Saturday and Sunday, October 28 and 29, with the participation of representatives from more than 60 countries. Notably missing were Moscow, which denounced it as an "openly anti-Russian event," and China, which insists it is neutral and refuses to criticize the invasion, VOA reports.

Ukraine sees these talks as an opportunity to win support for President Volodymyr Zelensky's ten-point peace plan from as many countries around the world as possible, especially as the conflict in the Middle East risks shifting the focus away from Ukraine, Euronews writes. Russia, which was not invited to any of the meetings, dismissed the initiative as unilateral.

"Ukraine's diplomatic efforts are paying off as international support for the Ukrainian peace formula grows," Ukrainian presidential office chief Andriy Yermak wrote on “X” before the session began.

The initial round of negotiations in Copenhagen in June brought together only 15 participants. Their number rose to 43 for the second round in Jeddah in August. In his speech at the conference, Yermak noted that as more countries join the development of Zelensky's plan, "Russia will have to yield to the international community. It will have to accept our general conditions."

On the day of the opening of the negotiations, he specified that five of the ten points of the plan will be discussed within them: nuclear safety, energy security, food security, release of prisoners of war and deportees and restoration of the territorial integrity of Ukraine. The closed-door talks were attended mostly by national security and policy advisers from the countries that sent delegations. Yermak "documented" the progress of the negotiations with an intense stream of Ukrainian and English language posts and photos on his "X" profile.

Statement of the co-chairs (Malta | Ukraine) on results of the meeting regarding key principles of peace for Ukraine.https://t.co/saxhvOoOuS

— Andriy Yermak (@AndriyYermak) October 29, 2023

"Although we are a neutral country, we cannot remain silent in the face of injustice, atrocities and abuse of power in this region. Malta believes in multilateralism under the auspices of international law and the UN Charter," said Malta's Foreign Minister Ian Borg. In his opening remarks, he noted that the large number of delegations was "a vote of confidence in Malta as a peace broker", reiterating the country's support for Ukraine.

Russia said it shot down eight Ukrainian missiles fired in the direction of Crimea

Russia announced today that it shot down eight Ukrainian missiles fired in the direction of Crimea, AFP reported, citing the Russian Defense Ministry.

"On October 30 at around 1:00 p.m. Moscow time an attempt by the Kyiv regime to attack installations on the Crimean peninsula with eight Storm Shadow cruise missiles was foiled. All missiles were shot down," the statement said .

Earlier today, Ukraine announced that it had successfully hit a Russian air defense system in Crimea overnight.

Russian officials did not comment on the report, but the Rybar Telegram channel, which is close to the Russian military and has a following of 1.2 million people, said it was a combined attack by Kyiv against the peninsula, which was annexed by Russia in 2014 According to this channel, Ukrainian forces fired two American ATACMS (Army Tactical Missile System) missiles at the vicinity of the village of Olenovka in Tarkhankut Bay, in Western Crimea. Attempts by Russian forces to shoot down these two missiles failed, but the Ukrainian impact did not cause major material damage, writes "Rybar".

Shortly before that, three unmanned Ukrainian boats were intercepted near Sevastopol, where the Russian Black Sea Fleet is based. Two of these devices were destroyed, the "Rybar" channel reported.

Ukraine said it hit a strategic Russian air defense site in Crimea

The Ukrainian army has struck a strategic object of Russian air defense on the western coast of the Crimean peninsula annexed by Russia in the early hours of today, the press service of the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces reported on Telegram, as quoted by the Ukrinform agency.

"On the night of October 30, the armed forces of Ukraine struck a strategic air defense target on the west coast of the temporarily occupied Crimea," the statement said.

Earlier in the "Astra" channel on "Telegram" it was reported that in the Ukrainian strike near the village of Olenivka in Crimea, around 3:00 a.m. local time, an object of an air defense regiment of the Russian army was hit. According to the same source, 17 Russian soldiers were wounded and five vehicles were damaged, one of them seriously.

The source also reported that explosions were heard in Sevastopol. According to Russian-appointed authorities in Crimea, the Russian Black Sea Fleet repelled an attack by Ukrainian drones.

"Since the morning, Russian terrorists have been shelling Odesa region with rockets," said the chairman of the Odesa regional military administration

"Since the morning, Russian terrorists have been shelling Odesa region with rockets," said Oleg Kiper, the chairman of the Odesa regional military administration, on the Telegram app today.

"The target of the enemy was the ship repair plant. As a result of the attack, a fire broke out, which was promptly extinguished by our rescuers. The administrative building and the equipment of the enterprise were damaged," said Oleg Kiper.

"According to his information, two people were injured. A man, born in 1961, and a woman, born in 1966, were taken to the hospital in medium serious condition. They are receiving the necessary medical assistance," added the chairman of the Odesa Regional Military Administration.

The Bulgarian community in Odesa region is the third largest in number and numbers over 150,000 people according to the official census in Ukraine in 2001. About 50-60 thousand Bulgarians live in Odesa. The largest compact Bulgarian population is concentrated in the Bolgrad, Izmail and Belgorodnist regions.

The attack on the airport in Dagestan was the result of "external interference", the Kremlin said

Yesterday's attack on the airport in the city of Makhachkala, the administrative center of Russia's predominantly Muslim republic of Dagestan, by protesters who were apparently looking for Israeli citizens was "largely the result of external interference," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said today, quoted from AFP.

Peskov did not specify the source of this alleged interference, but the head of Dagestan, Sergei Melikov, previously said that the riots were organized from Ukrainian territory, without providing any evidence, AFP noted.

Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold a meeting tonight to discuss "the West's attempts to use events in the Middle East to divide Russian society," Peskov added.

Russia is ready to discuss "post-conflict resolution" of Ukraine crisis, "coexistence" with West

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said that Moscow remains ready for discussions on the "post-conflict resolution" of the Ukrainian crisis and further "coexistence" with the West, the Russian News Agency TASS reported.

Shoigu made the remarks during the 10th Xiangshan Security Forum in China.

"In case the necessary conditions are created, we remain ready for political discussions on a realistic basis - both on the post-conflict resolution of the Ukrainian crisis and on the further coexistence with the West as a whole," Shoigu said at the event.

He further said that Russia is determined to continue military and military-technical cooperation with interested countries in the Asia-Pacific region, including the supply of equipment and joint exercises

"We are determined to continue military-technical cooperation with interested states, including the supply and maintenance of military equipment, personnel training, joint exercises, ship visits, and other relevant events," TASS quoted Shoigu as saying.

The Russian Defence Minister also said that Moscow's withdrawal of ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) does not mean the dismantling of this mechanism of military-strategic balance.

"As for our country's withdrawal from ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, this is only a desire to ensure balance with the United States of America, which has never ratified this treaty. Dismantling it is out of the question," Shoigu said.

Shoigu arrived in Beijing on Monday on a working visit, during which participated in the Xiangshan Security Forum.

"The head of the Russian military department will make a report at the plenary session on the topic 'Responsibility of large states and cooperation in the field of global security'," the Russian Ministry of Defense said.

"The forum is attended by representatives of senior management, ministers of defense and leading experts from the countries of the Asia-Pacific region, as well as a number of European countries," TASS quoted the Russian Defense Ministry.

The 10th Xiangshan Security Forum is being held from October 29-31, with official delegations from over 90 countries being in attendance, including the United Kingdom, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and the United States, in addition to academics and diplomats, TASS reported.

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