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The Hindu
a day ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
In Istanbul, Russia and Ukraine talk peace but are still far apart on truce
A much-awaited meeting between the Ukrainian government delegation and their Russian counterparts, on Monday, ended within an hour and with little progress in negotiating the end to the war that started in 2022. While agreements were reached on prisoner exchange, there has been no word on talks to potentially end the decades-long conflict. The slow pace of the talks was attributed to the lackadaisical effort from the Russian delegation that refused to share their agenda with the negotiating teams ahead of the meetings. 'We didn't receive the document until the meeting began. And therefore, we can't provide any feedback until we have had the chance to study it,' Rustem Umerov, the Ukrainian Minister of Defence, said at the end of the meetings. Organised under the aegis of the government of Turkiye, this was the second such meeting in Istanbul in the past month, between two warring parties and came less than a day after a large-scale Ukrainian attack on Russian military infrastructure. Operation Spiderweb Ukraine claimed that their attack, codenamed 'Operation Spiderweb', targeted over 40 planes, including surveillance and bomber aircraft, across several Russian bases, even as far east as Siberia. The resulting damage is estimated to be in billions of dollars for Russia. The impact of this intrepidity was undeniable felt at the Çırağan Palace, overlooking the Bosphorus sea, in Istanbul, as interactions between the rival delegations remained tense. 'The war goes on,' an official from the Ukrainian embassy in Turkiye said when asked about the drone attack. 'Ukraine had proposed a ceasefire on March 11. And if Russia agreed to it, I guess their planes would be intact right now,' he said, adding that the Russians remained deterrent to the idea of pausing conflicts. In fact, a 'full and unconditional ceasefire on land, at sea and in the air' remained a key demand and central to the Ukrainian agenda. 'The ceasefire is a basis for future talks of substance. We really can talk only when the weapons are silent,' Mr. Umerov said. 'Russia tries to get us into the dialogue on substantive issues like territories, like security guarantees, sanctions and whatsoever before we reach the ceasefire,' he added. However, Russia has its own terms for a ceasefire. It says the 'root cause' of the conflict should be addressed for durable peace, referring to its opposition to NATO's eastward expansion. Vladimir Medinsky, who led the Russian delegation in Istanbul, said they had proposed a 'two or three days [of ceasefire] in certain areas to collect bodies of soldiers on the fronts'. This was dismissed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who wrote on social media, 'the whole point of a ceasefire is to stop people from becoming dead'. Meeting of the leaders The Ukrainian delegation also pushed for a direct meeting between Mr. Zelenskyy and Mr. Putin. 'We propose to the Russian side to hold a meeting [of the leaders] by the end of this month, from June 20 to 30. This is crucial for making progress in the negotiation process,' Mr. Umerov said. The Ukrainians have very little faith in the authority of any delegation sent by Russia, one of their official said. 'In Russia, Putin is the person who decides everything… decisions on the ceasefire, on other crucial elements,' he said. 'Our president is ready to meet tomorrow, if Putin says I'm ready. President Zelenskyy will meet him right away.' Mr. Zelenskyy had also offered to meet with Mr. Putin during the last Istanbul talks, a move that was initially supported by the U.S. and Turkish officials. However, the invitation was rejected by Mr. Putin. Prisoner exchange Despite the brevity of the meetings and the escalation of violence, some progress was made in the form of a deal on the exchange of prisoners of war. Similar to the outcome of the last Istanbul meeting, which resulted in the largest yet prisoner exchange, it is expected that both sides will commit to an exchange of 1,000 prisoners, prioritising young soldiers, those between 18 and 25 years, and the severely sick and wounded. 'We also agreed to return 6,000 to 6,000 bodies for fallen soldiers,' Mr. Umerov said. Another key demand put forth by the Ukrainian side was the return of nearly 400 Ukrainian children who were allegedly abducted by Russian forces from the territories Russia captured. 'This matter is a fundamental priority for us,' Mr. Umerov said. 'If Russia is genuinely committed to the peace process, the return of at least half of the children from this list would be serving as a positive indication,' he added. An investigation by Yale researchers, published in 2024 , found 20,000 children were reportedly taken and transferred to Russian and Belarusian territories where they were enrolled into 're-education' camps. The case of the alleged abduction of children also led the International Criminal Court, in 2023, to issue arrest warrants against President Putin and other Russian officials. While the Russian delegation confirmed to a section of the media that they had received a list of 339 individuals, they did not elaborate whether it was a demand they would consider. As the brief meeting came to a close, the members of both delegations stayed behind to address the media, starting with the Ukrainians, held in one of the many grandiose rooms in the Ottoman-era palace. However, as the first press conference ended and the Ukrainian flag was swapped with the Russian one to set the stage for the next media briefing, journalists who interacted with the Ukrainian officials were asked to leave. The Russian delegation held a closed-room briefing with journalists from largely their own national publications and broadcasters. The meagre success of the negotiations was tested in the following hours as Russia launched airstrikes and shelling across multiple locations on the eastern Ukrainian provinces, and Ukraine launched an underwater attack at the Crimea bridge, which connects the Black Sea peninsula, annexed by Moscow in 2014, with Russian mainland. While referring to their operations, a day earlier, a Ukrainian diplomat in Turkiye rejected assertions equating hostilities on both sides. 'Russia is the aggressor and Ukraine is a country that is defending itself,' he said, adding that Russia hits Ukraine's residential areas, kills children and civilians, while Ukraine only targets legitimate military sites inside Russia. 'They are not comparable… but the war goes on,' he said. On the other side, Russian officials have repeatedly accused the Ukrainian forces of targeting civilian areas in Donbas and Russia's border regions. (Ruchi Kumar is an independent journalist based in Istanbul.)
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Ukraine relying on increased weapons production abroad
The Ukrainian government is relying on increased production in collaboration with European partners for the supply of weapons and ammunition, the country's defence minister said on Wednesday. Rustem Umerov said there is also interest in having Ukrainian arms companies manufacture newly developed systems outside the country. He made his comments after a meeting of the Ukraine Contact Group - also known as the Ramstein Group - in Brussels. These weapons should be delivered to Ukraine for the duration of the war, he added. Umerov, who reported on the meeting's outcomes together with German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius and the British Secretary of Defence John Healey, said: "We will build drones, missiles, ammunition and other weapons together. Ukrainian drones have changed the battlefield. And now they will change how Ramstein countries prepare for future threats." He added that the joint production represents a strategic shift. Pistorius had already promised increased efforts for more air defence systems and electromagnetic warfare before the meeting, namely protection and disruption of communication and weapon deployments. Other countries are participating in these initiatives. Healey condemned the ongoing Russian attacks on cities and civilians in Ukraine despite peace efforts: "Ukraine, the United States, all of us here are calling for a ceasefire. We are for peace. Putin continues the war, so the work of this contact group becomes even more important. We must step up. We must never step back."
BreakingNews.ie
2 days ago
- Business
- BreakingNews.ie
Zelensky calls Russia peace proposal an ‘ultimatum' and demands talks with Putin
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday dismissed Russia's ceasefire proposal as 'an ultimatum' and renewed his call for direct talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin to break the deadlock over the three-year war. Both sides exchanged memorandums setting out their conditions for a ceasefire for discussion at Monday's direct peace talks between delegations in Istanbul, their second meeting in just over two weeks. Advertisement Both sides have established red lines that make any quick deal unlikely. Mr Zelensky said that the second round of talks in Istanbul were no different from the first meeting on May 16. He described the latest negotiations in Istanbul as 'a political performance' and 'artificial diplomacy' designed to stall for time, delay sanctions and convince the United States that Russia is engaged in dialogue. 'The same ultimatums they voiced back then – now they just put them on paper … Honestly, this document looks like spam. It's spam meant to flood us and create the impression that they're doing something,' Mr Zelensky said in his first reaction to the Russian document. He added that the 2025 talks in Istanbul carry 'the same content and spirit' as the fruitless negotiations held in the Turkish city in the early days of the war. Advertisement The Ukrainian leader said that he sees little value in continuing talks at the current level of delegations. Defence minister Rustem Umerov led the Ukrainian delegation in Istanbul, while Vladimir Medinsky, an aide to Mr Putin, headed the Russian team. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks to journalists during a press conference in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Wednesday (Evgeniy Maloletka/AP) Mr Zelensky said he wants a ceasefire with Russia before a possible summit meeting with Mr Putin, possibly also including US President Donald Trump, in an effort to remove obstacles to a peace settlement. The US has led a recent diplomatic push to stop the full-scale invasion, which began on February 24 2022. 'We are proposing … a ceasefire before a leaders' summit,' with the US acting as a mediator, Mr Zelensky told a media briefing in Kyiv. Advertisement 'Why a ceasefire before the leaders' meeting? Because if we meet and there is no mutual understanding, no willingness or vision on how to end this, then the ceasefire would end that same day. But if we see readiness to continue the dialogue and take real steps toward de-escalation, then the ceasefire would be extended with US mediation guarantees,' he said. Ukraine is ready to meet at any time from next Monday at a venue such as Istanbul, the Vatican or Switzerland, Mr Zelensky said. A second round of peace talks on Monday between Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Istanbul lasted just over an hour and made no progress on ending the war. They agreed only to swap thousands of their dead and seriously wounded troops. Also, a new prisoner exchange with Russia could take place over the weekend, Mr Zelensky said. Advertisement
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Zelensky's chief of staff heads to US after Russia peace talks, source says
Editor's note: This is a developing story and is being updated. Andriy Yermak, head of Ukraine's Presidential Office, is traveling to the U.S., a source close to the Presidential Office told the Kyiv Independent on June 3. The visit follows the second round of Russian-Ukrainian peace talks in Istanbul on June 2, which focused on a new prisoner exchange but yet again failed to achieve a breakthrough in peace efforts. President Volodymyr Zelensky has urged U.S. President Donald Trump to impose additional sanctions on Russia if the peace talks stall. "If the Istanbul meeting brings nothing, that clearly means strong new sanctions are urgently needed — from the EU's 18th package, and from the United States specifically, the strongest sanctions President Trump promised," Zelensky said on June 2. Trump said on May 28 that the U.S. would soon know whether Russian President Vladimir Putin is serious about ending the war. If not, he warned, Washington would "respond a little bit differently." The U.S. president also said last month he had not yet imposed new sanctions on Russia because he believed a peace deal might be within reach. "If I think I'm close to getting a deal, I don't want to screw it up by doing that," he said, but added he is prepared to act if Moscow stalls further. Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, who led the Ukrainian delegation in Istanbul, slammed Russia for "once again stalling for time." Rejecting Kyiv's offer of a long-term truce, Russia only proposed a temporary two- to three-day ceasefire in specific areas of the front line to allow for the retrieval of fallen soldiers' bodies. Ukraine and Russia also agreed to work on another prisoner exchange with up to 1,200 captives from each side. Zelensky further revealed that Ukraine seeks new agreements with the U.S. on the purchase of weapons, adding that "appropriate meetings" will be scheduled but providing few details. The Trump administration has not approved any new major military aid packages for Ukraine, and the assistance allocated under the previous Biden administration is steadily running out. Zelensky's team has therefore offered Washington to buy U.S. weapons instead of receiving them as donations. Read also: Russian propagandists split between downplaying devastating Ukrainian attacks and issuing threats We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Russia stalling, staging 'diplomatic show' in peace talks with Ukraine, Umerov says
Defense Minister Rustem Umerov on June 2 slammed Russia for only providing its memorandum of a peace proposal at talks earlier in the day, saying that "the Russians are once again stalling for time." "(I)f this is just another attempt to buy time, then there should be one response: tougher international sanctions," Umerov said in a post to Facebook. "Our documents were submitted in advance. In contrast, the Russian 'memorandum' appeared only today — during the meeting itself. This created conditions that prevented the meeting from delivering the results needed to end the war," he added. Ukraine and Russia held another round of peace talks on June 2, after their first meeting in Istanbul on May 16. Both rounds of talks were largely inconclusive, with Russia reiterating its rejection of a ceasefire. Umerov attended the peace negotiations in Istanbul on June 2, leading Ukraine's 14-member delegation, which included several figures from Ukraine's military, human rights, and legal sectors. Umerov also led Ukraine's 12-member delegation on May 16. "We conveyed the positions formulated by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. One of the key points — an unconditional ceasefire for at least 30 days. This has been our principle and the position of our partners for many months," Umerov said. Russia only proposed a temporary two- to three-day ceasefire in specific areas of the front line to allow for the retrieval of fallen soldiers' bodies. "Russia rejects even the very idea of stopping the killings. That's why we appeal to the world: pressure is needed for real peace, not for an imitation of negotiations," Umerov said. At the first round of peace talks, both sides agreed to a 1,000-for-1,000 prisoner exchange, which took place from May 23-25. On June 2, Ukraine and Russia agreed to work on another prisoner exchange with up to 1,200 captives from each side. Zelensky, later on June 2, criticized Russia's proposal for a 2–3-day local ceasefire to retrieve the bodies of fallen soldiers, speaking during an online press conference attended by the Kyiv Independent. Read also: Operation Spiderweb — everything we know about Ukraine's 'audacious' attack on Russia's heavy bombers We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
