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When asked by the Kyiv Independent, a source close to the Presidential Office did not confirm whether Ukraine would still hold the talks if Putin does not join.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he might still go to the potential Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations in Istanbul on May 16 if there is progress toward a deal, the BBC reported.
A plane with the Russian delegation arrived in Istanbul for planned peace talks with Ukraine, pro-state news agency Interfax reported on May 15, citing sources in aviation services.
"Russia is ready for negotiations without any preconditions," Putin claimed in an address marking the end of the three-day Victory Day ceasefire. He invited Ukraine to begin talks in Istanbul on May 15.
The operation was carried out in Russia's Smolensk Oblast, a western region bordering Belarus, to disrupt arms and equipment shipments to Russian forces stationed at Ukraine's northeastern border.
"I think there is this window of opportunity this week, but also in the next 10 days, two weeks, to really bring the whole issue of Ukraine to a better place," NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said.
The Kremlin unveiled its delegation for Ukraine-Russia peace talks in a decree signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin on May 14. Putin was not on the list of delegates, nor were any other top-ranking Russian officials.
Ukrainian actor and TV presenter Maksym Nelipa was killed in action on May 12, his friends and family reported on May 14. The details of his death have not been disclosed.
European and U.S. officials, including Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, reportedly convinced Zelensky that attending the peace talks would reflect positively on Kyiv, diplomats told the Washington Post.
"We discussed in detail the logic of further steps and shared our approaches... It is critical that Russia reciprocate Ukraine's constructive steps. So far, it has not. Moscow must understand that rejecting peace comes at a cost," Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said.
"I am waiting to see who will come from Russia, and then I will decide which steps Ukraine should take. So far, the signals from them in the media are unconvincing," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
The air raid was announced at around 2:30 p.m. local time, while the explosion sounded around 2:50 p.m. The number of victims killed rose to three, Sumy Oblast Governor Oleh Hryhorov reported at 8:42 p.m.
If confirmed, the decision would mark the first time since Russia's full-scale invasion that President Volodymyr Zelensky is absent, either physically or virtually, from a NATO summit.
The disclosure follows a warning from Digital Affairs Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski, who on May 6 said Moscow was carrying out an "unprecedented" interference campaign.
Brazilian President Lula da Silva claimed that Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha had appealed to his Brazilian counterpart, Mauro Vieira, to ask Putin if he was willing to conclude a peace agreement.
Earlier reporting from the Washington Post cited a former Russian official who claimed Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin’s foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, would represent Moscow in the talks.