The talks took place in the warring capitals of Moscow and Kyiv, from Washington and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to countries across Europe
The talks have taken place in the warring capitals of Moscow and Kyiv, from Washington and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to countries across Europe. Now, all eyes are finally turning to Istanbul to seek an end to Russia’s 3-year-old, full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed restarting direct peace talks Thursday with Ukraine in the Turkish city that straddles Asia and Europe. And President Volodymyr Zelenskyy challenged the Kremlin leader to meet in Turkey in person.
What will unfold remains unclear. The Kremlin has refused to confirm who’s going to Turkey and whether it will include Putin. Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said Zelenskyy will only sit down with the Russian leader.
Zelenskyy said Tuesday that “if Putin does not arrive and plays games, it is the final point that he does not want to end the war.”
What’s known about the possible talks:
On Saturday, Zelenskyy hosted French President Emmanuel Macron, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in a show of unity. They issued a coordinated call for a 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine starting Monday.
The plan has received backing from the European Union and U.S. President Donald Trump, who had promised during his campaign to swiftly end the war that is now in its fourth year. The leaders pledged tougher sanctions on Russia if Putin did not accept the proposal.
In remarks to the media early Sunday, however, Putin effectively rejected the offer and proposed restarting direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul instead “without preconditions.” He did not specify whether he envisioned the talks to involve Zelenskyy and himself personally, or with lower-level officials.
Zelenskyy responded by insisting on a ceasefire, saying he will travel to Turkey — and challenged Putin to do the same: “I will be waiting for Putin in (Turkey) on Thursday. Personally. I hope that this time the Russians will not look for excuses.”
Pressed by reporters on who will represent Russia in Istanbul, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov refused to say, stressing that Putin had outlined Russia’s position clearly enough.
Trump’s administration initiated separate talks with Russia and Ukraine in Saudi Arabia in March. But since then, the administration has indicated it might withdraw from the process if no tangible progress is made.
