A third round of peace talks between Ukrainian and Russian officials is planned to take place later this week in Turkey, according to Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky.
“Today, I discussed with [secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council] Rustem Umerov the preparations for the exchange and another meeting in Turkey with the Russian side. Umerov reported that the meeting is scheduled for Wednesday,” Zelensky said during his daily address on Monday.
TASS, the Russian state-run news agency, reported Monday that the next round of talks between Ukraine and Russia will be held on July 24 local time, citing a source.
“The meeting is scheduled for July 24. The delegations may arrive in Istanbul on July 23,” the news agency quoted the source as saying.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday during a press briefing that Russia intends to “pursue our interests, we intend to ensure our interests and fulfil the tasks that we set for ourselves from the very beginning.”
The nations have held two rounds of peace talks in Istanbul so far — on May 16 and June 2 — and the discussions have led to the exchange of thousands of prisoners but the two have made little-to-no progress on a potential ceasefire agreement.
Since the last round of talks, which took place nearly two months ago, Russia issued a memo outlining conditions for reaching a ceasefire, including having Ukraine’s military disarm and agree to Russia’s annexation of four regions in Ukraine that were overtaken since Moscow launched its invasion over three years ago, which the Russian military has struggled to maintain.
The upcoming talks also come as President Trump has pressed for forging peace in the region and has in recent weeks been increasingly critical of Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying in a recent interview with the BBC that he is “disappointed” with the Kremlin’s leader, but not “done with him.”
The U.S. has brokered a deal to send more weapons to Ukraine, arms that would be drawn from NATO allies in Europe who agreed earlier this year to increase their investment in defense spending.
Last week, Trump warned Putin that he would slap new sanctions on Russia and other countries that purchase Moscow’s exports if a ceasefire is not reached within “50 days.” Russia has not wavered from its demands and has continued to shell Ukraine, firing off drones and missile attacks that have targeted dozens of cities.
