Russia and Ukraine have returned to having direct peace talks, in what is the second negotiation of this type since 2022. The delegations of Moscow and Kiev met in the luxurious Ciragan Palace of Istanbul for negotiations which, however, have little hopes for concrete results. To mediate is the Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan, while the delegations are, for Moscow, the councilor of Putin Vladimir Medinski and for Kiev the Minister of Defense Rustm Umerov.
The attacks
It certainly did not help the discussion that Russia launched an attack with 472 drones in the night, the highest number ever recorded since the beginning of the war, while on its part Ukraine has affected four Russian military airports, hitting at least 41 planes, including strategic bombers, also in Siberia, thousands of kilometers from the front.
The drones used would have been introduced clandestinely in Russian territory and activated later. Both attacks demonstrate how far the peace prospects are still, despite the current negotiations.
Zelensky meets the allies
From Lithuania, where he participated in a summit with the Eastern NATO countries, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said: “We are ready to take the necessary measures in view of peace” with Moscow, without however specifying which ones. His negotiators had talks in Istanbul also with Italian, German and British representatives to “coordinate positions”, according to Kiev’s diplomacy.
The interviews come in a context of strong international pressures, in particular by the US president Donald Trump, who warned that the US could withdraw from the role of mediators if there are no progress. The last meeting between the two parts, also in Istanbul on May 16, had led to the largest exchange of prisoners of the war, with a thousand prisoners freed from each side. But even then no respite emerged or an approach of positions.
Kiev continues to consider Moscow’s approach as an attempt to impose a surrender, while Russia insists on the fact that Ukraine must accept its conditions or face further territorial losses, especially after the advances obtained on the field in May.
Requests
The priorities of Ukraine are “a complete and unconditional fire” and the “return of the prisoners” and the Ukrainian children who Kiev accuses Moscow of kidnapped, said Zelensky on Sunday. Ukrainian president also wants a direct meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. A perspective that the Kremlin has repeatedly rejected. For his part Moscow refuses the “ceased the unconditional fire” requested by Kiev and the West and insists on the resolution of what defines the “deep causes” of the conflict.
Among the Russian requests: the ban on the adhesion of Ukraine to NATO, the sale of five regions already illegally annexed and the exclusion of western troops on Ukrainian soil. Kiev considers these conditions unacceptable and demands the complete withdrawal of Russian forces, as well as concrete security guarantees, such as NATO protection or the presence of allied troops.
