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Russia and Ukraine have agreed to exchange 1,000 prisoners of war from each side, marking a rare point of common ground amid otherwise strained negotiations in the Istanbul peace talks.
Kyiv has also proposed a meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin, signaling a desire to elevate the dialogue to the highest political level.
According to statements from both delegations, each side presented its proposals for a potential ceasefire during the talks. While no breakthrough was announced, the discussions are set to continue, with the next round of negotiations to be scheduled in the near future.
The Istanbul peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have paused, with a Ukrainian diplomatic source telling Reuters that Russia’s demands during the negotiations were “unrealistic” and went far beyond anything previously discussed between the two sides, casting doubts over the potential of a breakthrough.
Despite leaks from the Turkish Foreign Ministry that talks had ended, sources from both the Ukrainian side and the Russian news agency TASS suggest the delegations have paused for a break and negotiations will reconvene.
The meeting lasted approximately two hours, following a last-minute breakthrough that resolved a diplomatic impasse just before the meeting was set to begin.
The bilateral talks were preceded by a separate meeting involving representatives from Turkey, the United States, and Ukraine, which lasted just over an hour, according to sources from the Turkish Foreign Ministry speaking to TASS. Following those discussions, a Ukrainian diplomatic source emphasized that Kyiv continues to prioritize securing a ceasefire in its negotiations with the Russian delegation.
Speaking during a European summit in Albania and addressing the ongoing Istanbul peace talks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made a pointed remark about Russia’s stance in the negotiations.
“Russia has sent almost the same people it sent back in 2022. This shows that it has not changed its fundamental approach,” Zelensky said. “They make a lot of statements, they issue many threats, but there is no substantive outcome.”
