Russian and Ukrainian negotiating teams will again meet in Istanbul, Turkey, on Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed, for the first such meeting since President Donald Trump set a 50-day deadline for a ceasefire to be reached.
In his nightly video address on Monday, Zelenskyy said he spoke with Rustem Umerov — the former defense minister who is now heading Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council — on Monday, to discuss upcoming prisoner swaps and the next round of talks with Moscow.
“Umerov reported that the meeting is planned for Wednesday,” the president said. “More details will follow tomorrow.”
Russia’s state TASS news agency, meanwhile, quoted a source in Turkey who also said the talks would be held on Wednesday. The state-owned RIA news agency — also quoting a source — said the negotiations would stretch over Thursday and Friday.
ABC News reports:
This week’s meeting will be the third recent round of talks between the two combatants, previous meetings having been held in Istanbul on May 16 and June 2. Before that, the two sides had not met directly since the opening weeks of Russia’s full-scale invasion, which began in February 2022.
The White House is pushing for an immediate ceasefire, a stance backed by Ukraine. But Russia has so far dodged committing to the proposal, with President Vladimir Putin saying various issues need to be addressed before the fighting can be paused.
Trump has appeared in recent months increasingly frustrated by Russia’s intransigence, plus by its nightly drone and missile strikes across Ukraine.
Earlier this month, Trump set a 50-day deadline for Moscow to agree to a ceasefire, threatening fresh sanctions and tariffs if it failed to do so.
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