Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky slammed Russian President Vladimir Putin for skipping direct peace talks in Türkiye.
During his address at the European Political Community (EPC) summit in Tirana on Friday, Zelensky expressed frustration over what he described as a missed opportunity to take meaningful steps toward ending the ongoing war in Ukraine.
Türkiye is hosting the Russia-Ukraine peace talks on May 15-16 in the Dolmabahçe Presidential Working Office in Istanbul.
“This week, we had a real chance to take important steps toward ending this war, if only Putin had not been afraid to come to Türkiye,” Zelensky said.
“I was in Ankara yesterday and was ready for a direct meeting with Putin, whether in Ankara or in Istanbul, and not just for a meeting, but to resolve all the important issues. But he didn’t agree to anything.”
Speaking alongside Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama and other European leaders, Zelensky also criticized the makeup of the Russian delegation present at the latest round of peace discussions in Istanbul, labeling it as insufficient and lacking authority.
“And you can also see that the Russian delegation that came to Istanbul is of a very low level. None of them are people who actually make decisions in Russia. Still, I sent a team to Istanbul, led by Ukraine’s defense minister, at least to see if those Russians can actually decide anything,” he said.
Highlighting the human toll of the conflict and the urgency of diplomatic progress, Zelensky reiterated Ukraine’s primary objective in the talks: the establishment of a ceasefire.
“Our number one priority is a full, unconditional, and honest ceasefire. This must happen immediately to stop the killing and create a solid basis for diplomacy.”
“And if the Russian representatives in Istanbul today cannot even agree to that, to a ceasefire, to this clearly necessary first step, it will be 100% clear that Putin continues to undermine diplomacy,” he added.