In fiasco evolved and the second attempt at direct conversations between Ukraine and Russia. As in the spring of 2022, Friday (16.05.25) there was no white smoke for peace.
Negotiators from Russia and Ukraine were found in a room in a room in Istanbul, for the first time in three years, for less than two hours and they left without appearing to the horizon immediately possible light for a truce, All the more so for the end of the war, as a BBC correspondent reported.
The first direct conversations between Kiev and Moscow Russia should have had announced a new era of diplomacy to resolve Europe’s largest conflict from World War II.
On the contrary, their context, the brevity and limited outcome gave analysts more reasons to doubt Whether Russia wants the end of the war in Ukraine.
In fact, Russia seems to have threatened Ukraine with ‘Eternal War’ During the immediate peace talks held in Constantinople today, according to information provided by Sky News citing a relevant source.
Russia’s mission presented to Ukrainian a proposal, which had little room for acceptance, as it is at its core again Ukrainian terms unconditional. At the same time, no luck seems to have had the only one that the two sides were called upon to agree on, A ceasefire for 30 days.
In the first leaks of the outcome of the Ukrainian sources talks, they told the French Agency and Reuters that the Russian side demanded that the Ukrainian grant new territories. Ukrainian official characterized ‘Unacceptable’ these requirements aimed at derailing the negotiations.
“Russian representatives are arguing unacceptable demands that go beyond what has been discussed before the meeting,” including “the departure of Ukrainian forces from large parts of the Ukrainian territory under their control, so that a truce could be achieved,” he said.
The agreement on prisoners
Russia welcomed the meeting and was eager to continue contacts. The two sides agreed to Exchange of 1,000 prisoners of war Each – the largest so far – as a measure of confidence building.
However, Kiev, which calls on the West to impose stricter sanctions if Moscow rejects Trump’s proposal for a 30 -day ceasefire, hastened to mobilize its allies for a harder reaction.
Immediately after the end of the talks, President Volodimir Zelenski had a telephone conversation with Trump and the leaders of France, Germany and Poland, his spokesman said.
The Russian demands were characterized by a Ukrainian source as “out of reality and far beyond what had been discussed in the past”. The same source, who spoke anonymously to Reuters, said that Moscow demanded Ukraine to withdraw from sections of its territory to achieve a ceasefire, including “unrealistic and non -constructive terms”.
Extension of talks of 2022
Moscow considers current talks as a continuation of the negotiations that had been held earlier in 2022, also in Constantinople.
However, the terms of those talks – at a time when Ukraine was still shocked by the invasion – were extremely adverse to Kiev, including a demand to reduce the size of the Ukrainian army.
The head of Zelenski’s office, Antrii Germakhe said that any Russia’s attempt to align the current talks with those failed negotiations will fail.
The bet that Zelenski won
During Istanbul’s peace talks, the first direct negotiations from 2022 that took place following a proposal by Donald Trump, Volodimir Zelenski won something important.
Although skeptical, he responded to the call of the US president and gave the “present” to Turkey while Their Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin chose to abstain, sending a low -level delegation, which Zelenski described as contemptuously as ‘Decorative’as Politico explains.
This image reinforces the diplomatic position of Ukraine’s president over his Russian counterpart, at a time when Donald Trump has personally engaged in an effort to reach an agreement between the two sides.
Is this the moment when Donald Trump will finally admit that the Vladimir Putin has no serious intention To negotiate the end of the war that started three years ago?
The Ukrainians certainly hope for it. Ever since the incident in the oval office between Zelenski, Trump and US Vice President Jay Di Vance earlier this year, the Ukrainian president has been trying to avoid impulsive reactions that would have been out of strategy.
On the contrary, he appears committed to the plan that he and his team drafted shortly after Trump’s re -election: Do not directly cause the US president.
In essence, however, the conclusion is one: one week of a diplomatic thriller and the Ukraine is almost where it started.