The move follows Ukraine's ratification of the minerals agreement, deepening U.S.-Ukraine economic ties and signaling expanded U.S. involvement in Ukraine's long-term recovery.
"Ukraine has initiated a coordinated campaign to vilify Hungary in order to undermine our initiative to hold a poll on (Kyiv's) EU membership," Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned that further concessions from Ukraine during negotiations would be unreasonable if Russia continues to attack civilian targets.
U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoys, Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg, will travel to Istanbul for possible peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, Reuters reported on May 13, citing three undisclosed sources.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said he will meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, but said both leaders are ready to fly to Istanbul if Russian President Vladimir Putin chooses to attend the talks there.
A captive named Umit allegedly agreed to serve in the Russian army in exchange for Russian citizenship and a monetary reward of 2 million rubles ($25,000).
Russia's Buryatia Republic declared a state of emergency on May 13 over massive forest fires that have engulfed multiple regions in the Russian Far East.
President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks during a press conference on the negotiations in Istanbul, on May 13, 2025, in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Vitalii Nosach / Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
President Volodymyr Zelensky said on May 13 that he expects a ceasefire to result from a potential in-person meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, which may take place in Istanbul on May 15.
Zelensky said he will meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, but said both leaders are ready to fly to Istanbul if Putin chooses 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 during a press conference.
"I have conveyed the signal to President Erdogan, and the Turkish side is ready."
The meeting, if it occurs, would mark the first direct negotiations between the two leaders since 2019 and could signal a breakthrough in stalled diplomatic efforts to end Russia's full-scale invasion.
The Kremlin has not confirmed Putin's participation, while Kyiv continues to demand an unconditional ceasefire.
"An unconditional ceasefire as of today, and based on the experience of all these days and months, cannot be guaranteed by anyone on the Russian side except Putin," he said.
The Ukrainian president added that U.S. President Donald Trump had been invited to the meeting.
"If he confirmed his participation, it would have an additional impetus for Putin to come," Zelensky said.
Trump, currently on a four-day Middle East tour, voiced support for the talks, calling them "very important" and saying he "strongly pushed" for them to happen.
"I think good things can come from it," he said on May 12.
CNN reported that Trump's special envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, and Steve Witkoff, a real estate developer serving as Trump's unofficial envoy to Moscow, will be in Istanbul to observe the negotiations, regardless of Trump's own attendance.
An undisclosed senior administration official told the news outlet that Trump's attendance would largely depend on whether Putin would arrive as well.
Presidential Office head Andriy Yermak emphasized on May 12 that while Russia may send envoys, only Putin can make binding decisions.
"We understand who is ultimately in charge," he said. Mykhailo Podolyak, an advisor to Yermak, added: "Only Putin can make a decision to continue the war or stop the war."
Kyiv and several European capitals have urged an unconditional 30-day ceasefire beginning May 12 as a first step toward peace. Russia has refused the proposal and continued to launch strikes across Ukraine in recent days.
"If Putin doesn't show up, that's the final signal that they are not ready to end the war," Zelensky said. "That means all the promises of the United States, Europe, and other leaders must be fulfilled. This should be the strongest package of sanctions."
The last and only face-to-face meeting between Zelensky and Putin occurred in December 2019 in Paris under the Normandy Format. Since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, there have been no direct meetings between the two.
Tim Zadorozhnyy is a news editor at The Kyiv Independent. Based in Warsaw, he is pursuing studies in International Relations, focusing on European Studies. Tim began his career at a local television channel in Odesa. After moving to Warsaw, he joined the Belarusian opposition media outlet NEXTA, starting as a news anchor and later advancing to the position of managing editor.
Chris York,
