Negotiations to end the war between Russia and Ukraine with the participation of delegations from the two states, Turkey and the United States, are expected to be held today in Istanbul, the day after they were postponed.
A Turkish delegation will be present at the first meeting of envoys of the two states in three years, sources at the Foreign Ministry in Ankara informed the German Agency.
Trilateral talks between the US, Ukraine and Turkey are also being planned, in addition to those between Russia, Ukraine and Turkey, according to the same sources.
Whether there will be a four-party meeting has not been decided so far, always according to dpa's sources.
The head of the American mission is Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that he would not attend the talks, in protest at the decision of his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin not to participate.
Russian diplomacy rejected criticism that it sent a second-rate delegation.
The head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky, is considered a person without particular political weight in the West and in Kyiv.
However, he had also taken part in the 2022 negotiations, shortly after the outbreak of the war, which ultimately proved fruitless.
Mr. Zelensky sent a 12-member delegation led by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov. The other members are senior intelligence officials, the staff, and a presidential adviser.
The aim is to agree on a "just and lasting peace," Kiev assured. The specific instructions given are top secret.
Mr. Umerov was also present at the talks in 2022. The Crimean Tatar had not yet taken office as a minister at that time, he was a simple MP.
Mr. Rubio said yesterday that he does not have "high expectations."
Source: KYPE
