Vladimir Putin will not travel to Istanbul for talks with Volodymyr Zelensky, the Kremlin said, rejecting the Ukrainian president's bold offer for the two heads of state to meet in person in Turkey to broker peace, the Guardian reports.
The Kremlin announced late Wednesday evening that the Russian delegation will be led by Vladimir Medinsky, according to Putin's advisor who also led the only previous round of direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine in 2022.
Immediately after the announcement, an unnamed US official said that Donald Trump would not attend the talks either. Trump had previously stated that he would only travel to Turkey if Putin was also present.
Medinsky, Russia's ultra-conservative former culture minister, will be joined in Istanbul by Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin, Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin and Igor Kostyukov, the head of Russia's military intelligence service.
The appointment of Medinsky as the head of the Russian delegation indicates that Moscow wants to revive negotiations modeled after the failed Istanbul round in 2022, when Russian demands included limiting the Ukrainian military and banning the country's reconstruction with Western support, conditions that Kiev had already rejected as unacceptable.
It is significant that this time the Kremlin is not sending its top diplomats, Yuri Ushakov and Sergei Lavrov, who previously participated in several important talks with the US in Saudi Arabia.
Pressure on Putin to appear in person at the talks grew after both Zelensky and Trump invited him to come to Istanbul to discuss a possible peace deal.
Zelensky invited Putin to a direct meeting in Turkey after the Russian leader suddenly, in a late-night address from the Kremlin, called for direct negotiations with Ukraine in Istanbul.
Many things remain unclear about the negotiations, which are gaining importance amid heightened rhetoric and strategic outsmarting by Russia and Ukraine.
According to his aides, Zelensky was on his way to Ankara on Wednesday evening, where he will meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday. The Ukrainian leader said he was ready to travel to Istanbul immediately if Putin showed up.
"If Putin doesn't come and continues to play around, that's the final proof that he doesn't want the war to end," he said on Tuesday.
Late Wednesday, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiha posted photos on social media from a meeting in Turkey with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Senator Lindsey Graham. Sibiha said they discussed advancing peace efforts and harmonizing positions during this crucial week.
"It is crucial that Russia responds to Ukraine's constructive steps. So far, it has not done so. Moscow must understand that rejecting peace has its price," he added.
Trump had previously urged Zelensky to accept an offer of talks and expressed hope that Putin would show up. On Wednesday, he said he would consider traveling to Turkey if the Russian president was there, but noted that he was scheduled to visit the United Arab Emirates on Thursday, the final leg of his Gulf tour.
"That doesn't mean I wouldn't go if it could save a lot of lives," the US president added.
Brazil and China, which have good relations with Moscow, have also supported holding talks between Russia and Ukraine.
At a press conference in Beijing, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said he would try to convince Putin to participate in negotiations with Zelensky.
"I'll try to talk to Putin," Lula said, adding that he was planning a trip to Moscow. "It doesn't cost me anything to say, 'Hey, comrade Putin, go to Istanbul and negotiate, damn it.'"
Brazil and China issued a joint statement on Tuesday, stressing that direct negotiations are "the only way to end the conflict."
Putin and Zelensky have met only once so far, in 2019, and Moscow has repeatedly challenged the legitimacy of the Ukrainian president.
In Istanbul, Ukraine is expected to propose a complete 30-day ceasefire as a starting point for further negotiations.
Moscow has consistently rejected proposals for an extended ceasefire, arguing that it would give Ukraine time to rearm and reorganize while Russian forces make progress on the front.
Russian officials announce that they will repeat maximalist demands from the failed 2022 negotiations in Istanbul.
European leaders have vowed to increase pressure on Russia if talks in Turkey fail, but the question remains whether they can convince Trump to join their efforts for additional sanctions on Moscow.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Wednesday that the solution for Ukraine must not be an imposed peace from Moscow. Addressing parliament, he warned of the military realities created against Ukraine's will and stressed that it is essential that the political West does not allow itself to be divided.
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