RUSSIA – Welcome to the Russia Ukraine peace talks latest news where we’ll provide you with latest updates on the scheduled peace talks in Istanbul, Turkey. Here are the latest:
Russian Delegation Arrives in Istanbul
A Russian delegation on Thursday has arrived in Istanbul in preparation for upcoming negotiations with Ukraine, according to Russian state news agency Tass.
Trump Wants to Stop the Ukraine War Situation; Marco Rubio
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday that US President Donald Trump wants the Russia-Ukraine war to end and hopes for progress with both nations in the coming days.
Stressing the significance of Thursday’s peace talks in Istanbul, Rubio told reporters on day two of a NATO gathering in Türkiye that the alliance would continue efforts to ensure there are no “weak links” within the group, adding that the Russia-Ukraine conflict remains the foremost issue.
“The president of the United States has been abundantly clear he wants the war to end,” Rubio said, adding that Trump is ready to support any mechanism that would bring about lasting peace.
Highlighting NATO’s purpose of preventing wars, Rubio said that Trump “wants to end wars and that’s the hope with Russia and Ukraine. We’ll see what happens over the next couple of days in that regard, but we want to see progress made.”
Rubio stressed that “there is no military solution to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. This war is going to end not through a military solution, but through a diplomatic one.”
Ukraine’s Zelensky to Visit Turkey Today
The Ukrainian president is set to visit Turkey today to discuss peace initiatives and possible ways to end the war.
Ahead of the visit yesterday, he stated that “Ukraine is ready for any format of negotiations, and we are not afraid of meetings. Tomorrow – in Türkiye.”
Putin Convenes a Meeting with Heads of Military and Intelligence Agencies
Russian President Vladimir Putin held a meeting with his foreign and defense ministers as well as intelligence and military chiefs ahead of peace talks with Ukraine in Istanbul, the Kremlin said Thursday.
“Before the departure of our delegation to Istanbul yesterday evening, President Putin held a meeting on preparations for the upcoming negotiations with the Ukrainian side,” spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in Moscow.
The Wednesday night gathering was attended by members of the Russian negotiating team, as well as Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Defense Minister Andrey Belousov, Russian Guard head Viktor Zolotov, Security Council Secretary Sergey Shoygu, Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov, and Federal Security Service head Alexander Bortnikov, said Peskov.
Putin on Wednesday signed an order on the composition of his country’s delegation for the direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on Thursday.
The order, which was posted on the Kremlin website, said the delegation will be led by presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky and will also include Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin, Russian General Staff Director Main Intelligence Directorate head Igor Kostyukov, and Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin.
The statement also mentioned experts for the negotiations.
During Istanbul peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine in March 2022, a draft peace agreement was agreed upon, but the Ukrainian side withdrew from the negotiation process.
According to the head of the Ukrainian delegation at those talks, David Arakhamia, this was done on the advice of Boris Johnson, who was then Britain’s prime minister.