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14-05-2025
KYIV/ MOSCOW: President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will attend talks on Ukraine this week only if Russia’s Vladimir Putin is also there, an aide to the Ukrainian leader said on Tuesday, challenging the Kremlin to show it is genuine about seeking peace.
US President Donald Trump’s senior envoys, Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg, will travel to Istanbul for the talks on how to end Russia’s war in Ukraine, three sources familiar with the plans told media.
Trump has offered to attend himself if necessary but a senior U.S. official said it was unclear whether anyone from the Russian government would show up. President Putin, who has questioned Zelenskiy’s legitimacy, has not said whether he will take part.
“President Zelenskiy will not meet with any other Russian representative in Istanbul except Putin,” Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak told media.
Asked who would represent Russia at the talks, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said; “As soon as the president sees fit, we will announce it.”
Both Moscow and Kyiv have sought to show they are working towards peace after Trump prioritized ending the war, which has raged for over three years since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, but have yet to agree any clear path.
Putin on Sunday proposed direct talks with Ukraine, after ignoring a Ukrainian proposal for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire. Trump publicly told Zelenskiy to accept.
The Ukrainian leader then said he would be waiting for Putin in Istanbul on Thursday, though the Kremlin chief had never made clear he intended to travel himself. (Int’l Monitoring Desk)
