By Kavita Mistry 
Russians and Ukrainians sat face-to-face for under two hours on Friday (May 16, 2025) in Istanbul for the first direct talks in over three years aimed at ending their war, with expectations low for breakthroughs.
Kyiv is seeking an “unconditional ceasefire” in Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II, which has also destroyed large swathes of Ukraine and displaced millions of people.
Moscow says it wanted to address the “root causes” of the conflict and revive failed 2022 negotiations in which it made sweeping territorial and political demands of Ukraine.
Russia and Ukraine prisoners swap
Russia and Ukraine agreed on Friday to exchange 1,000 prisoners of war each, the head of Russia’s delegation Vladimir Medinsky said after their peace talks ended.
Such an exchange would be their biggest POW swap since the start of the war in 2022.
Also Read | Putin skipping talks would signal Moscow not seeking peace: Kyiv
Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan sat at the head of a table in front of Turkish, Russian and Ukrainian flags at Istanbul’s Dolmabahce Palace — with Russian and Ukrainian delegations facing each other, footage from the room showed.
The talks concluded around 1220 GMT after just over 90 minutes, a Turkish Foreign Ministry source said.
While the talks were ongoing, a Ukrainian diplomatic source told AFP that Russia was making “unacceptable” territorial demands in a bid to derail negotiations.
Further talks may take place later on Friday but are not planned, a senior Ukrainian official told AFP.
Speaking at a European summit in Albania, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged a “strong reaction” from the world if the talks fail, including new sanctions.
The two sides spent the 24 hours before the talks slinging insults at each other, with Mr. Zelenskyy accusing Moscow of sending “empty heads” to the negotiating table.
Putin ‘afraid’
Nevertheless, the fact the meeting was taking place at all was a sign of movement, with both sides having come under steady pressure from Washington to open talks.
Russian President Vladimir Putin declined to travel to Turkiye for the talks, which he had proposed, sending a second-level delegation instead.
Mr. Zelenskyy said Friday Mr. Putin was “afraid” of meeting, and criticised Russia for not taking the talks “seriously”.
Both Moscow and Washington have also talked up the need for a meeting between Putin and US President Donald Trump on the conflict.
“Contacts between presidents Putin and Trump are extremely important in the context of the Ukrainian settlement,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Friday, adding that “a meeting is undoubtedly necessary.”
Trump had said Thursday that nothing would be settled until the two leaders met.
“Our number one priority is a full, honest and unconditional ceasefire,” Mr. Zelenskyy said as talks were underway.
“This must happen immediately to stop the killing and create a solid basis for diplomacy.”
If a ceasefire cannot be agreed, “it will be 100 percent clear that Putin continues to undermine diplomacy,” he added.
And in that case, “the world must respond. There needs to be a strong reaction, including sanctions on Russia’s energy sector and banks,” Mr. Zelenskyy said.
Rubio in Istanbul
Ahead of the talks, Ukrainian officials in Istanbul held meetings with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Trump’s special envoy Keith Kellogg and the national security advisors of Britain, France and Germany.
Mr. Rubio urged a “peaceful” end to the war and said “the killing needs to stop”, according to State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce.
A Ukrainian diplomatic source in Istanbul told AFP the delegation also wanted to discuss a possible Putin-Zelensky meeting.
But while the talks were ongoing, the source said Russia was advancing hardline territorial demands.
“Russian representatives are putting forward unacceptable demands… such as for Ukraine to withdraw forces from large parts of Ukrainian territory it controls in order for a ceasefire to begin,” the source said.
They accused Moscow of seeking to “throw non-starters” so the talks end “without any results”.
Leaders including French President Emmanuel Macron and NATO chief Mark Rutte slammed Putin for skipping the Istanbul talks.
Mr. Putin sent Vladimir Medinsky — a former cultural minister who is not seen as a key Kremlin decision-maker.
Mr. Rubio acknowledged that the Russian representation was “not at the levels we had hoped it would be at” and downplayed expectations for a breakthrough.
Russia’s Medinsky said Moscow saw Friday’s negotiations as a “continuation” of failed 2022 talks, which he led — a sign that Moscow’s hardline demands have not changed.
But he pushed back against Mr. Zelenskyy’s criticism and insisted the Russian delegation has a mandate from Putin to “find possible solutions.”
Russia has repeatedly said it will not discuss giving up any territory that its forces occupy.
Kyiv’s chief negotiator is Defence Minister Rustem Umerov, who has roots in Crimea, the peninsula, annexed by Russia in 2014.
Russia continued its attacks in the hours ahead of the talks, with Kyiv saying at least two people were killed.
Published – May 16, 2025 06:47 pm IST