Anadolu Agency's Morning Briefing – April 20, 2022

ANKARA (AA) - Anadolu Agency is here with a rundown of the latest developments around the world.

Russia has commenced the second phase of its “special military operation” in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Tuesday.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for a four-day humanitarian pause in Ukraine to observe Orthodox Easter.

Ukraine could have already ended the war launched by Russia if it had access to all the weapons it needed, said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Moreover, the country’s military claimed that some 20,800 Russian soldiers have so far been killed in Ukraine.

Ukraine’s foreign minister urged Russia to heed UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ call for an end to the war and a four-day humanitarian pause.

Residents of Ukraine’s capital Kyiv have begun returning to their homes after leaving for safer places since Russia launched the war, the city’s mayor said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan welcomed the normalization process initiated to mend ties between Turkiye and Armenia.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken held separate phone calls Tuesday with Israeli and Palestinian leaders, during which he called on both sides to “end the cycle of violence” in the region.

Hungary’s foreign and trade minister said Tuesday that Budapest does not support sanctions against Russian oil and gas and will not allow the transit of weapons to Ukraine through its territory.

Japan said it will ship masks and clothing to protect against chemical weapons to Ukraine.

Catalonia froze dialogue with the Spanish government Tuesday until Madrid investigates allegations of mass espionage against Catalan separatists.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson apologized in parliament for attending an illegal lockdown party at his official residence on Downing Street, an offense that last week drew a fixed penalty notice from the police.

Allied leaders of countries including the US, Canada and in the EU on Tuesday agreed to impose new sanctions on Russia as hostilities in Ukraine continue, Italy announced.

Recent events caused by Israeli radical groups and security forces in Palestine were on the agenda in a phone call Tuesday between the presidents of Turkiye and Israel.

Russia declared four Austrian diplomats persona non grata, ordering them to leave the country by the end of April 24.

The Russian Defense Ministry on Tuesday called on the Ukrainian military in the city of Mariupol to surrender, according to the ministry's spokesman.

Turkiye criticized a Swedish far-right politician for burning the Muslim holy book the Quran, saying such "neo-Nazi movements have led to increased Islamophobia."