The first formal peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in three years have taken place in the Turkish metropolis of Istanbul – with significantly lowered expectations since the Russian President Vladimir Putin chose not to attend. Therefore, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky and the US President Donald Trump refrained from participating.
Still, the tone appears to have been tough at the meeting, with demands from Russia reminiscent of those presented during the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Russian delegation, led by Vladimir Medinsky, is said to have demanded territorial gains and political changes, including in Kyiv.
According to information from the meeting, a proposal for an "unconditional ceasefire" has been presented. The Ukrainian delegation was headed by Defense Minister Rustem Umjerov and Chief of Staff Andrij Jermak.
The Ukrainian delegation stated on Friday afternoon that they would leave Istanbul during the day. A Ukrainian proposal for continued talks thus does not seem to have been heeded by Moscow.
Prisoner Exchange – The Largest So Far
Ukraine and Russia agreed to exchange 1,000 prisoners of war each, but it is still unclear when it will take place. It would then be the largest since it began in 2022.
The Russian representative said he was "satisfied" with the talks and "ready for further" contacts.
Discussions about a meeting between Zelensky and Putin are also said to have taken place.
Reactions from the outside world came, among others, from French President Emmanuel Macron, who said it was "unacceptable" that Moscow once again ignored Ukraine's proposals.
Turkish Host
Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan opened the meeting at the Dolmabahçe Palace at lunchtime on Friday. The two delegations sat opposite each other, at a long table. At one end, there was a shorter table for the hosts. They did not shake hands.
It was the first talks between Russia and Ukraine since the spring of 2022. But the US's hopes for an agreement were toned down by Foreign Minister Rubio, who repeated President Donald Trump's statement that nothing would happen without a meeting with President Putin.
Directly after the talks, Zelensky spoke with the leaders of France, the United Kingdom, and Poland in a joint call with the US President Donald Trump.
French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, his colleague Donald Tusk in Poland, and Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who gathered for a meeting in Albania's capital Tirana, also discussed possibilities to tighten sanctions against Russia.
We will continue to prepare new sanctions in cooperation with the USA, said President Macron.
On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a large-scale invasion of Ukraine, after already in 2014 having entered the neighboring country, which then led to the annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and a largely frozen conflict in Donbass in the east.
In a supposed lightning-fast offensive from the north, east, and south, the Russian forces met resistance. They did not reach Kyiv but advanced along the southern coast to the Crimean Peninsula. The coastal city of Mariupol fell after a long and bloody siege.
Ukraine carried out two counter-offensives in the autumn of 2022, where they retook the Kharkiv region in the northeast and the major city of Kherson with surrounding areas. In connection with this, Russia said it would annex the partially occupied regions of Kherson, Donetsk, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia.
A larger Ukrainian counter-offensive began in the summer of 2023 but failed to break through the then fortified Russian defense. In August, Ukrainian forces entered Russia and occupied part of the Kursk region. By the spring of 2025, they had lost almost the entire area.
Russia has regularly attacked places all over Ukraine with rockets and drones. At least tens of thousands of civilians have been killed in the war, but the dark figure is believed to be large. Several million Ukrainians have fled abroad.
The military losses, killed and wounded taken out of combat, are estimated to be hundreds of thousands on both sides.
