Russian and Ukrainian negotiators convened in Istanbul on Friday for their first direct peace talks in over three years, amidst pressure from US President Donald Trump to resolve Europe's deadliest conflict since World War Two.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan addressed the delegations at Dolmabahce Palace, emphasising the urgency of a ceasefire and expressing hope that these talks would pave the way for a leaders' summit. He underscored the critical choice facing both sides: a path towards peace or continued destruction.
These face-to-face discussions marked a resumption of direct contact since March 2022, shortly after Russia's invasion. However, expectations for a significant breakthrough were tempered by Trump's statement that progress hinged on a meeting between him and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Setting out Ukraine's priorities, the head of its delegation insisted that peace required a 30-day ceasefire, the return of abducted Ukrainian children, and a comprehensive exchange of prisoners of war. Russia stated its desire for a diplomatic resolution and readiness to discuss a ceasefire but voiced concerns that Ukraine might exploit a pause to regroup its forces, mobilise additional troops, and acquire more Western weaponry.
Ukraine and its allies accuse Putin of deliberately stalling and lacking genuine interest in peace.
Despite proposing the talks in Turkey, Putin declined Volodymyr Zelenskyy's invitation to attend in person, sending a team of mid-level officials instead. Ukraine reciprocated with negotiators of similar rank.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump's Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg were also present in Istanbul, engaging in separate diplomatic exchanges. Rubio expressed scepticism about a major breakthrough given the level of the negotiating teams, though he hoped to be proven wrong.
On the ground, Russia reported capturing another village in eastern Ukraine, while Ukrainian media reported air alerts and explosions in Dnipro just before the Istanbul meeting commenced.
Russia views these talks as a continuation of earlier negotiations held in Istanbul in the initial weeks of the war in 2022. However, the terms discussed then, when Ukraine was more vulnerable, included Moscow's demand for substantial reductions in Ukraine's military size. Zelenskyy's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, dismissed any attempts to link the current talks with those unsuccessful earlier discussions.
With Russian forces controlling nearly a fifth of Ukraine, Putin has maintained his demands for Kyiv to cede territory, abandon its NATO aspirations, and adopt a neutral status. Ukraine vehemently rejects these conditions as equivalent to capitulation and seeks security guarantees from global powers, particularly the United States.
Having repelled Russia's initial assault on Kyiv in 2022 and reclaimed significant territory in the war's first year, Ukraine has since witnessed a slow but relentless Russian advance over the past two years. The conflict has resulted in hundreds of thousands of military casualties on both sides, the deaths of thousands of Ukrainian civilians, the destruction of entire cities, and the displacement of millions.
Moscow justifies its "special military operation" by citing NATO expansion and the potential for Ukraine's membership to pose a security threat. The Kremlin insists that any resolution must address these "root causes." Kyiv and its allies denounce this justification as a false pretext for an imperialistic land grab. Ukraine's army chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi, reported that Russia currently has approximately 640,000 troops in Ukraine and has transformed its aggression into a protracted war of attrition, with active combat spanning the entire frontline.
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