(Updated: )
U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed on May 13 that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other senior officials will attend planned peace talks between Ukraine and Russia in Turkey on May 15
The announcement comes as international attention centers on Istanbul, after Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed hosting direct talks there between Kyiv and Moscow.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has said he will attend but the Kremlin has so far stayed quiet about the possibility of Putin attending.
"Our people are going to be going there. Marco is going to be going there. Others are going to be going, and we'll see if we can get it done," Trump said during the U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum.
Earlier, Reuters reported that Trump's envoys, Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg, would travel to Istanbul to observe the negotiations. Rubio's participation marks the first public confirmation of Cabinet-level U.S. involvement.
Witkoff has held several meetings with Putin in Moscow and came under criticism for pushing Russian talking points on Ukraine and the war. Kellogg has been more closely engaged with Ukrainian officials, even publicly supporting Kyiv's call for an unconditional ceasefire.
Zelensky said he will meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, but said both leaders are willing to fly to Istanbul if Putin agrees to attend the talks there.
"We will be waiting to meet with Putin in Turkey. So that Russia does not manipulate cities and say that Putin is not ready to fly to Ankara, but is ready to fly only to Istanbul," Zelensky told reporters in Kyiv on May 13.
The Kremlin has acknowledged preparations for the talks but has not confirmed whether Putin will personally attend. Trump, who is currently on a four-day tour of the Middle East, suggested he might join the summit.
"I've also been working relentlessly to end the terrible bloodshed between Russia and Ukraine, and, very importantly, talks are being held in Turkey later this week... and they could produce some pretty good results," Trump said.
A senior U.S. official told CNN that Trump's attendance would "largely depend" on Putin's presence. Zelensky said Trump had been formally invited, adding that his participation "would have an additional impetus for Putin to come."
The last and only face-to-face meeting between Zelensky and Putin occurred in December 2019 in Paris under the Normandy Format.
Chris York,
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