UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres believes that peace talks between Ukraine and Russia are still impossible.

 He said this in an interview with the Spanish publication El Pais.

 "At the moment, I do not see the possibility of immediately achieving - we are not talking about the future - a global ceasefire, peace talks," Guterres said.

 According to him, a meeting of four parties (Russia, Ukraine, the UN and Turkey. - Ed.) is being prepared in Istanbul, which will concern the export of food through the Black Sea.

 "It is true that exports of food and fertilizers are not subject to sanctions, but there are indirect obstacles that remain and we are trying to eliminate them; in addition to solving the problems that exist with inspections that are not carried out in the Black Sea. It is about , to achieve a prolongation of the initiative, which would be more lasting and perfect," he said.

 Guterres also expressed concern about the situation at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhia NPP.

 "I hope that there will be enough caution on both sides not to cause a tragedy. And I think the possibility of nuclear escalation is very small. The Chinese initiative was very important to clearly state that nuclear escalation is unacceptable," he said. .

 It will be recalled that the participants of the technical negotiations regarding the Black Sea Grain Initiative in Turkey last week were unable to reach an agreement on the admission of new vessels for the transportation of grain from Ukraine.

 At the last moment before the end of the next period of validity of the "grain agreement" on March 18, it was still extended. However, Moscow soon said it had agreed to an extension of only 60 days - half the standard 120-day deadline - and threatened to tear up the deal if its demands were not met.