Ukraine has blamed Russia for undermining the expected peace talks in Istanbul by demanding a one-on-one meeting, excluding Turkish or U.S. officials, at the last minute, Sky News and the Guardian reported on May 16.
The news comes before what would be the first negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow since 2022. Turkish officials were expected to open the talks, while U.S. delegates are in Istanbul for separate meetings with Moscow and Kyiv representatives.
After Moscow proposed to hold peace talks in Turkey this week, President Volodymyr Zelensky agreed and invited Russian President Vladimir Putin for a face-to-face meeting. The Russian leader declined to attend and appointed his aide, Vladimir Medinsky, to lead the talks.
The Russian delegation included deputy ministers and lower-level aides and excluded top officials like Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Zelensky commented that Moscow has dispatched a "sham delegation," while Western officials presented the move as an indication that Putin is not serious about peace efforts.
Though Zelensky has since then left for Albania, a Ukrainian delegation, including Presidential Office head Andriy Yermak, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, and Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, has arrived in Istanbul to meet the Russian delegates.
The Ukrainian delegation has already held meetings with U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Kyiv and its allies have urged Moscow to adopt an unconditional ceasefire starting May 12 as the first step toward peace talks — a proposal Russia has ignored.
While Ukrainian officials said they hope to discuss a possible truce in Istanbul, Russia presented the meeting as the continuation of the 2022 talks and stressed the need to address what it sees as the "root causes" of the war.
Martin Fornusek
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