Ukraine keeps Russia guessing over peace talks
Ukraine has resisted pressure from Moscow and Washington to commit itself to attending peace talks with Russia on June 2, saying it first needed to see the proposals Russian negotiators plan to bring to the table
After US President Donald Trump urged Moscow and Kyiv to work together on a peace deal to end their three-year-old war, Russia proposed sitting down with Ukrainian officials next week in Istanbul.
Kyiv responded by saying it was committed to the search for peace, but that it was waiting for a memorandum from the Russian side setting out their proposals, which it had still not received.
"For a meeting to be meaningful, its agenda must be clear, and the negotiations must be properly prepared," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy wrote on X after hosting Turkey's foreign minister for talks in Kyiv.
"Unfortunately, Russia is doing everything it can to ensure that the next potential meeting brings no results."
The war, the biggest on the European continent since World War Two, began when Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Expectations for the talks are modest because the positions staked out so far by the two sides are far apart and work between them has yet to begin in earnest on narrowing the gap.
Nevertheless, both Kyiv and Moscow are keen to demonstrate to Trump that they are on board with his efforts to end the conflict.
Kyiv is seeking more US military aid, while Moscow hopes he will ease economic sanctions on Russia.
In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Russian delegation would be travelling to Istanbul and would be ready for talks with Ukraine on Monday morning.
"At the moment, everyone is focused on the direct Russia-Ukraine negotiations. A list of conditions for a temporary truce is being developed," Peskov told reporters.
Reuters reported earlier this week that Putin's conditions for ending the war in Ukraine include a demand that Western leaders pledge in writing to stop enlarging NATO eastwards.
Trump's envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, said earlier on Friday that Russia's concern over the eastward enlargement of NATO was fair and the United States did not want to see Ukraine in the US-led military alliance.
Commenting on Kellogg's statement, Peskov said: "We are pleased that these explanations by the president are understood, including in Washington."
Turkey's government hosted a previous round of Ukraine-Russia talks in Istanbul on May 16, which ended with no breakthrough, and has again offered its services as a mediator.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told reporters in Kyiv: "As long as (the sides) remain at the negotiating table, progress can surely be seen."
If the talks go ahead in Istanbul, the next step would be to try to host a meeting between Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Ukraine's Zelenskiy, he added.
But Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, who appeared alongside Fidan at a news conference, said Kyiv needed to see the Russian proposals in advance for the talks to be "substantive and meaningful".
Sybiha did not spell out what Kyiv would do if it did not receive the Russian document, or set out a deadline for receiving it.
"We want to end this war this year, and we are interested in establishing a truce, whether it is for 30 days, or for 50 days, or for 100 days," he said.
Russia has said its delegation at the Istanbul talks will be led by Vladimir Medinsky, a Kremlin aide who led the Russian team at the previous round of talks.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
West Australian
an hour ago
- West Australian
PM hopeful of Donald Trump meet, vows to talk tariffs
Anthony Albanese has vowed to talk tariffs with Donald Trump when they meet on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Canada later this month. NewsWire understands the details of the leaders' first face-to-face have not been set but both sides expect them to meet. The Prime Minister said on Tuesday he 'certainly will' raise Australia's inclusion in sweeping tariffs. 'This is an act of economic self-harm, and it's not the act of a friend, and this just pushes up prices for American purchasers and consumers,' Mr Albanese told the ABC. Australia was included in the Trump administration's blanket 25 per cent tariffs on foreign steel and aluminium in March. The US President had promised a Canberra carve out was 'under consideration'. Australia was also hit with 10 per cent levies on most goods as part of Mr Trump's 'Liberation Day' imposts. Asked what it was like to deal with Mr Trump's unpredictability, Mr Albanese said being 'consistent and clear and unambiguous' was key. 'I've had three really constructive discussions with President Trump, but it's important that you don't jump around and take different positions from day to day,' he said. 'That's what my government is ensuring that we do. 'We do have a clear, consistent position on wanting free and fair trade. 'We do have a position which is to support the US (free trade agreement). 'We continually remind our American friends that America enjoys the benefit of a trade surplus with Australia, which is why it makes no sense to undermine trade between Australia and the United States.' Mr Albanese also pushed back against Washington's demand for Canberra to lift defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP. Australia's military budget came up during a bilateral meeting between Defence Minister Richard Marles and his US defence counterpart Pete Hegseth over the weekend. In a read out, the US Embassy said the two senior officials 'discussed aligning investment to the security environment in the Indo-Pacific, accelerating US force posture initiatives in Australia, advancing defence industrial base co-operation, and creating supply chain resilience'. 'On defence spending, Secretary Hegseth conveyed that Australia should increase its defence spending to 3.5 per cent of its GDP as soon as possible,' the embassy said. Mr Albanese said Australia was 'a sovereign nation' and would decide its own spending commitments. 'We are implementing an increase in our defence expenditure, more than $10bn over the forward estimates, more than $50bn over the medium term,' he said. 'We want to provide Australia with the capability that we need.'
Perth Now
an hour ago
- Perth Now
Albo's Trump vow ahead of G7 summit
Anthony Albanese has vowed to talk tariffs with Donald Trump when they meet on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Canada later this month. NewsWire understands the details of the leaders' first face-to-face have not been set but both sides expect them to meet. The Prime Minister said on Tuesday he 'certainly will' raise Australia's inclusion in sweeping tariffs. 'This is an act of economic self-harm, and it's not the act of a friend, and this just pushes up prices for American purchasers and consumers,' Mr Albanese told the ABC. Australia was included in the Trump administration's blanket 25 per cent tariffs on foreign steel and aluminium in March. The US President had promised a Canberra carve out was 'under consideration'. Australia was also hit with 10 per cent levies on most goods as part of Mr Trump's 'Liberation Day' imposts. Asked what it was like to deal with Mr Trump's unpredictability, Mr Albanese said being 'consistent and clear and unambiguous' was key. 'I've had three really constructive discussions with President Trump, but it's important that you don't jump around and take different positions from day to day,' he said. 'That's what my government is ensuring that we do. 'We do have a clear, consistent position on wanting free and fair trade. 'We do have a position which is to support the US (free trade agreement). 'We continually remind our American friends that America enjoys the benefit of a trade surplus with Australia, which is why it makes no sense to undermine trade between Australia and the United States.' Mr Albanese says being 'consistent and clear and unambiguous' is key to dealing with Mr Trump. NewsWire / Martin Ollman Credit: News Corp Australia Mr Albanese also pushed back against Washington's demand for Canberra to lift defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP. Australia's military budget came up during a bilateral meeting between Defence Minister Richard Marles and his US defence counterpart Pete Hegseth over the weekend. In a read out, the US Embassy said the two senior officials 'discussed aligning investment to the security environment in the Indo-Pacific, accelerating US force posture initiatives in Australia, advancing defence industrial base co-operation, and creating supply chain resilience'. 'On defence spending, Secretary Hegseth conveyed that Australia should increase its defence spending to 3.5 per cent of its GDP as soon as possible,' the embassy said. Mr Albanese said Australia was 'a sovereign nation' and would decide its own spending commitments. 'We are implementing an increase in our defence expenditure, more than $10bn over the forward estimates, more than $50bn over the medium term,' he said. 'We want to provide Australia with the capability that we need.'
News.com.au
an hour ago
- News.com.au
‘No one cares': Volodymyr Zelensky dismisses Russian ‘anger' after daring Ukrainian operation
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has declared 'no one cares' whether Vladimir Putin is 'angry' about his country's daring attack on military bases deep inside Russia, rejecting the fears, from some quarters, that it could further escalate the war. The raid, codenamed Operation Spider's Web, took 18 months to plan and execute. Ukraine smuggled drones across the Russian border, hidden in trucks, which then drove to the sites of military bases. One penetrated as far as Siberia, more than 4000 kilometres away from the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. At a co-ordinated moment, the trucks released their drones, which then attacked while being controlled remotely. Ukraine claims to have wiped out a third of Russia's strategic bombers, a heavy blow to the capabilities of Putin's air force. Ukraine pulled off the extraordinary operation with near-total secrecy, and all its operatives successfully made it back across the border. Even the United States, whose intelligence and military aid have been vital throughout the war, was not warned beforehand. Russia has yet to justify concerns that it might escalate its own violence in response, though Russian-affiliated social media accounts have been sharing ominous quotes, supposedly from Putin himself. The statement in question, repeated verbatim by dozens of accounts, is unattributed and unverified, but may signal the stance of Russian state media. 'They proved that there can be no peaceful solution. They have prepared their own end with this action, there is no more red line, they will regret what they did,' it reads. Mr Zelensky brushed aside worries about an escalation while speaking to reporters today. 'When asked by journalists whether yesterday's operation might enrage the Russians, I responded that just a day earlier, Russia had launched a massive overnight attack on Ukraine, with over 480 drones and missiles,' Mr Zelensky said. 'They struck civilian infrastructure, residential buildings. There were casualties, people killed and injured. This happens every single day. 'Sometimes there's a short pause, and to be honest, we now call it a 'pause' if there's just no one killed that night. But even then, drones still fly, and people still get wounded. We are still talking about dozens of drones and cruise missiles. 'So no, no one cares whether Russia is angry. What matters is that Russia must move towards ending this war. And as a global community, we must do all we can to stop them.' Mr Zelensky prodded the Trump administration, saying Ukraine is 'very much awaiting strong steps from the United States'. 'We hope (Donald Trump) will support sanctions and push Putin to stop this war, or at least to take the first step towards ending it: a ceasefire,' he said. 'These are critical things.' Preliminary talks between Ukraine and Russia, which had been scheduled before Ukraine's operation, went ahead in Istanbul, Turkey as planned overnight. Mr Zelensky claimed the Russian officials sent to Istanbul 'behaved more calmly' and 'modestly' than before – implying the attack had humbled them, somewhat. However the talks delivered little substantive progress. Both sides did agree to exchange prisoners, in an agreement covering all sick and heavily wounded POWs, as well as those under the age of 25. But Russia is still rejecting Ukraine's concerted push for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire. Russia did offer a truce of two or three days across some of the war's frontline. As a condition for a full ceasefire, it demanded that Ukrainian troops withdraw entirely from four regions – Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson – which it partially occupies. Putin's representatives did also hand over a memorandum, which they framed as a blueprint for a 'lasting peace', though neither side has released details of what's in it. Ukraine said it would take a week to consider the contents. 'The Russian side continued to reject the motion of an unconditional ceasefire,' Ukraine's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergiy Kyslytsya told reporters after the talks. Russia said it had offered a limited pause in fighting. 'We have proposed a specific ceasefire for two to three days in certain areas of the front line,' top negotiator Vladimir Medinsky said, adding that this was needed to collect the bodies of dead soldiers from the battlefield. 'I was told the delegation behaved more calmly than before. But the arrogance? Well, it is what it is,' Mr Zelensky said afterwards. 'These arrogant people acted a little more modestly. Maybe a few more events like this are needed so that everyone will start behaving like decent human beings.' He did, however, accuse Putin of 'playing games' with the talks. 'The key to lasting peace is clear, the aggressor must not receive any reward for war.' Meanwhile Mr Trump, who appears to have lost patience with the peace process having promised, during last year's US election campaign, to end the war within a day of taking office, today said he was 'open' to meeting with both Mr Zelensky and Putin in Turkey, should the opportunity arise. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has proposed that Mr Trump, Mr Zelensky and Putin come together later this month in either Istanbul or Ankara. Putin has thus far refused such a meeting. But Mr Zelensky has said he is willing to do it, underlining that key issues can only be resolved at that level, given Putin's unilateral decision-making power in Russia. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Mr Trump 'is open to it, if it comes to that, but he wants both of these leaders and both sides to come to the table together'.
