Moscow and Kiev have not held direct negotiations since meeting in Istanbul in April 2022 FILE PHOTO: The Russian-Ukrainian talks at the Dolmabahce Palace in Istanbul in April 2022. © Getty Images / Cem Ozdel The first direct talks between Russia and Ukraine in more than three years are scheduled to take place in Türkiye’s largest city, Istanbul, on Thursday. On Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin offered to resume direct dialogue between Moscow and Kiev in order to find a lasting settlement to the ongoing conflict that would address its root causes. After US President Donald Trump supported the proposal and said Kiev should accept it “immediately,” Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky, who had previously ruled out any talks with Moscow, also expressed his readiness to travel to Istanbul. Kiev had earlier stated that the only official from Moscow that Zelensky would talk to is Putin. However, the Russian president has so far made no indication that he is planning to travel to Türkiye. Moscow and Ukraine last talked to each other in April 2022, also in Istanbul. Russia, which initially expressed satisfaction with the results of that meeting and withdrew its forces from the outskirts of Kiev as a goodwill gesture, later accused Ukraine of backtracking on the progress achieved in Türkiye, saying it had lost trust in Kiev’s negotiators. Russian officials, including President Putin, later blamed the West and, in particular, then-UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson for derailing the peace process, saying he had urged Kiev to “just continue fighting.” 14 May 2025 14:04 GMT Unnamed Turkish officials have told Bloomberg that they are not expecting US President Donald Trump to arrive in Istanbul on Thursday. However, the sources said that they are “not entirely ruling out” the possibility of a visit by Trump in the coming days, particularly if his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin joins him in the country. When asked about the agenda of the possible talks between Russia and Ukraine, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov replied that “all the talking points are on the table.” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov earlier said that Moscow wants to discuss “a sustainable settlement of the situation, first of all, by addressing the very roots of this conflict, resolving issues related to the denazification of the Kiev regime, ensuring recognition of the realities that have developed recently, including the entry of new territories into Russia.” US President Donald Trump has told journalists aboard Air Force One that he could travel to Istanbul on Thursday in order to “end the war” and “save a lot of lives,” despite having a visit to the United Arab Emirates on his schedule. When asked if Putin would be taking part in the negotiations, Trump replied by saying: “I do not know if he would be there if I am not there.” More
