Kremlin issues update on preparations for potential Ukraine talks
Direct talks between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul later this week are still possible, and Moscow is making preparations should they take place, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has said.
On Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin offered to resume direct negotiations between Moscow and Kiev to find a lasting settlement to the conflict that would address its root causes. He suggested that the talks could take place in Türkiye’s largest city on Thursday.
After Putin’s proposal was supported by US President Donald Trump, Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky also expressed readiness to engage in dialogue with Russia. However, he again insisted that any talks should be preceded by the start of a 30-day ceasefire – a demand that Moscow has repeatedly ruled out.
When asked by journalists on Tuesday if the talks in Istanbul would actually take place, Peskov replied that “the Russian side continues to prepare for the negotiations that are scheduled to take place on Thursday,” but declined to comment further.
Peskov also refused to reveal the lineup of the Russian delegation for the potential negotiations, saying that “we will announce it as soon as the president [Putin] deems it necessary.”
The Kremlin spokesman appeared to rule out the possibility of Ukraine’s Western European backers taking part in the peace process between Moscow and Kiev in any form.
“[Western] Europe is, after all, entirely on Ukraine’s side. It cannot claim to have an unbiased approach… Its approach is not balanced, it is rather pro-war, aimed at continuing the fighting, which is in sharp contrast to the approach demonstrated, for example, by Moscow or Washington,” Peskov explained.
