Facts about Russia-Ukraine conflict: Turkey, Poland agree on more diplomatic efforts to end Ukrainian crisis

BEIJING, March 17 (Xinhua) -- The Russia-Ukraine conflict continues on Thursday as relevant parties are working to broker a peaceful solution. Following are the latest developments of the situation:

Turkey and Poland agreed to step up diplomatic efforts to end the Ukrainian crisis, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday.

"We mainly discussed the developments in Ukraine and Russia, as well as our bilateral relations. As two NATO allies, we had a detailed exchange of views. In this process, we will continue our consultation and cooperation with Poland," Erdogan said at a joint press conference with his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda in the Turkish capital Ankara.

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday asked the United States to "do more" to help Ukraine defend itself against the ongoing military operation by Russia.

In a speech delivered via videoconference to the U.S. Congress, he also asked the United States to champion the establishment of a no-fly zone over Ukraine, or, alternatively, to provide fighter jets to his country, requests that have both been rejected by the U.S. administration thus far.

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Ukraine has integrated its electricity transmission network into the European energy system, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday.

"Ukraine has become a member of the European Energy Union. The unification of Ukrainian and European energy systems has been completed," Zelensky tweeted.

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The way to solve the ongoing Ukraine crisis is not by crossing others' red lines, but to respect and abide by the commitments that have been made, a Pakistani expert told Xinhua in a recent interview.

For Russia, the red line is the eastwards expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), said Najma Minhas, an international affairs expert and editor at Pakistani media outlet Global Village Space. "When you saw increasing movement eastward, the red line started going very, very red."

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A former Pentagon analyst said the U.S. military complex stands to benefit from the conflict between Russia and Ukraine as it ramps up defense spending for what could be a protracted affair in Europe.

"The American Military-Industrial-Congressional Complex (MICC) will benefit from this war (the Russia-Ukraine conflict) because it is setting the stage for a second Cold War that will increase tensions over the long term," said Franklin C. Spinney, a former Pentagon analyst.