Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.
Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in
Moscow has sent a ‘low level’ delegation to meet Ukrainian representatives in Istanbul, while Trump says he could fly to Turkey on Friday ‘if appropriate’
I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice
Volodymyr Zelensky has derided Russia’s delegation for peace talks in Istanbul as “stand-in props”, moments after landing in Ankara for a meeting with the Turkish president.
“Officially, I’m not aware of the Russian’s level [of representation]. But from what we’ve seen they look like stand-in props,” Mr Zelensky told cameras after deboarding his presidential plane.
In a momentous day for Ukrainian diplomacy, Mr Zelensky will meet with president Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, where the Turkish president will call for a ceasefire without delay.
Elsewhere, delegations from Russia and Ukraine are set to meet in Istanbul for the first time since March 2022. Talks will take place this afternoon, according to Moscow’s foreign ministry.
Ukraine has sent high-level representatives to the Istanbul talks, Mr Zelensky said. But Moscow is sending a low-level delegation without president Vladimir Putin, dashing hopes of a possible three-way meeting between Putin, Mr Zelensky and Donald Trump.
“I’m here. I think this is a very clear message [to Putin],” Mr Zelensky told Sky News as he left the airport to meet Mr Erdogan.
Mr Trump earlier offered to head to Turkey and join Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky tomorrow if the situation on Ukraine-Russia peace talks changes and if “it is appropriate”.
Meanwhile, frontline clashes continue to rage, with a total of 168 clashes were recorded by Ukraine’s military on Wednesday.
A potential future meeting between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump does not directly depend on progress towards peace in Ukraine, Russian deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov said.
Russian and Ukrainian delegations may hold direct talks in Istanbul on Thursday afternoon.
Volodymyr Zelensky has again hit out at the “theatrical” delegation sent by Russia to talks in Istanbul, and said Kyiv is working to understand what mandate they have from the Kremlin.
Taking to X, the Ukrainian president reiterated his comments that Ukraine is being represented by top level diplomats, including representatives of the presidential and foreign offices.
He said the US side has also sent a high-level delegation. Envoys Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg are expected to be at the talks.
“I have not yet received official confirmation regarding the Russian level of representation,” Mr Zelensky added. “But from what we can observe, it appears theatrical. We will decide on our next steps after the conversation with President Erdoğan.
“It is essential to understand the level of the Russian delegation, what mandate they hold, and whether they are authorised to make any decisions at all – because we all know who actually makes decisions in Russia.”
The Kremlin has reiterated its earlier confirmation that Russian president Vladimir Putin has no plans to travel to Istanbul for talks with Ukraine.
A Russian delegation is there already to meet the Ukrainian team, it added.
Asked if Putin would go to Istanbul if US President Donald Trump did, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia did not know yet how the negotiations would go and that the Ukrainian delegation had not yet shown up.
Volodymyr Zelensky has arrived for his Ankara meeting with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Here is the first photo of the pair…
Volodymyr Zelensky has addressed Russian president Vladimir Putin, saying that his presence in Istanbul serves as a “very clear message”.
Asked by Sky News whether he has a message for Putin, Mr Zelensky said: “I’m here. I think this is a very clear message.”
The Russian president declined to travel to Turkey for a face-to-face meeting with Mr Zelensky.
A 71-year-old man has been injured after Russia troops dropped an explosive from a drone, local authorities said.
The man was riding his bicycle in the town of Beryslav, the Kherson region’s military administration said.
He has suffered a blast injury, contusion and shrapnel sounds to his legs, it added according to Ukrainska Pravda.
The US is open to amost “any mechanism” to reach peace, US secretary of state Marco Rubio said on Thursday.
“We’ll see what happens over the next couple of days, but we want to see progress made in that regard,” he said in a statement before an informal meeting of Nato foreign ministers in Antalya on Thursday.
Whatever mechanism is outlined, whatever the process is that needs to happen – we are open to being constructive and helpful in any way we can to end the conflict,” he added, according to Ukrainska Pravda.
“This war is going to end not through a military solution but through a diplomatic one. And the sooner an agreement can be reached on ending this war, the less people will die and less destruction there will be. And that ultimately what the president’s goal is.”
Fires have erupted at the sites of Russian attacks in Ukraine’s Sumy and Dnipropetrovsk regions.
The attacks damaged residential buildings, a kindergarten, shops and cars, according to Ukrainska Pravda. There were not any casualties, according to early estimates.
“The Russians have carried out a large-scale overnight attack on a village on the territory of the Sumy hromada,” the Sumy military administration said on Telegram.
“The enemy launched about 10 attack UAVs on civilian infrastructure. A fire broke out at the site of the hits, and the State Emergency Service has been working there since nightfall.”
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in
Ukraine-Russia war latest: Zelensky hits out at Putin’s ‘stand-in props’ at Turkey peace talks after snub – The Independent
