Russia and Ukraine direct peace talks collapse after President Vladimir Putin skips Turkey negotiations.
According to Reuters, US President Donald Trump and Russian President Putin have announced that they will not attend the first direct talks between Moscow and Kyiv, all set to take place on Thursday, May 15, 2025.
The Kremlin late on Wednesday shared the list of the delegation that will attend peace talks with Ukraine in Turkey, which did not include the name of the president who proposed direct negotiation. Instead, the Kremlin stated that the meeting will be led by presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky and Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin.
Following the Kremlin's delegation announcement, a US official also declared that Trump, who is currently on a three-nation tour of the Middle East, will also not attend talks.
Notably, the Republican president earlier said that he is considering participating in the Ukraine and Russia peace talks.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Turkey
After the EU, Ukraine and US calls for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire, Putin on Sunday. May 11, 2025, proposed direct negotiations with Ukraine in Istanbul on Thursday "without any preconditions."
It was the first time in three years of conflict when Russia and Ukraine agreed on direct negotiation. While Putin never confirmed that he will attend the meeting, the absence of the Russian and US presidents lowers the expectations for a major breakthrough in the war that Moscow began in February 2022.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had challenged Putin to attend the talks "if he's not afraid" in an apparent contest to show Trump who wants peace more between them.
Notably, Zelenskyy was already on his way to Turkey when the Kremlin announced the list of the delegation. However, a Ukrainian official has said that the president would only take part in the talks if Putin attended.
