Zelensky: "If Putin hasn't come, then I have nothing to do in Istanbul"

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky met with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Turkey’s capital, Ankara. Afterwards, he spoke in front of journalists and expressed his views on the upcoming negotiations with Russia and the fact that President Vladimir Putin did not come to Istanbul. Meduza provided the main excerpts from his speech.

“The level of Russia’s delegation in the negotiations is quite low. However, out of respect for Trump and Erdoğan, and to achieve at least initial steps toward ending the war, I decided to send the Ukrainian delegation to Istanbul.

If Putin hasn’t come, then I have nothing to do in Istanbul — nor do the head of the SBU or the Chief of the General Staff. Ukraine’s delegation is led by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov. His primary mandate is to achieve a ceasefire. I have doubts about the success of the negotiations, but I hope that the Russians will at least propose something.

The Ukrainian delegation will stay in Istanbul until tomorrow and will also hold a meeting with the American side. If today a ceasefire can be reached at the level of technical groups without leaders, then fine — there is no need for a meeting.

But if a signal comes from Russia that a ceasefire agreement can only be reached between heads of state, then I am here. If Putin is ready for negotiations, let’s meet without any preconditions. We can’t chase him around the world. Putin needs to show leadership. If Russia does not demonstrate genuine readiness to end the war, Ukraine will ask the U.S., the European Union, and countries of the Global South to impose harsh sanctions against Moscow. Our delegation has already departed from Ankara to Istanbul,” said Zelensky.

Earlier, it became known that Russian President Vladimir Putin would not attend the negotiations in Istanbul. The Russian delegation is headed by Putin’s aide, historian Vladimir Medinsky.

According to the BBC, Zelensky stated that the dates of the meeting between Ukrainian and Russian sides have not been confirmed, and that it may take place today or tomorrow.

Zelensky also rejected the idea of giving up Crimea to establish peace with Russia. “We do not recognize the temporarily occupied territories as Russian territory,” he said.

Additionally, the Ukrainian leader called for increased pressure and sanctions against Russia.

“Pressure cannot come from just one direction. That’s why we want Russia to face pressure — at least in the form of sanctions — from Europe, the U.S., and other countries,” he said. Read 'Zamin' on Telegram!