This is reported by Kyiv24
In Istanbul, on the evening of July 23, the third round of negotiations began between the delegations of Ukraine and the Russian Federation. The talks are taking place with the participation of the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, Rustem Umerov, and the assistant to the President of Russia, Vladimir Medinsky. Before the meeting began, the parties held a discussion at the level of delegation leaders.
Key Topics of the Negotiations
Opening the negotiations, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan delivered an opening speech. The main issues for discussion included the conditions for a ceasefire and the possibility of organizing a direct meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Before the negotiations in Istanbul, Rustem Umerov, along with the head of the President’s Office, Andriy Yermak, visited Ankara. In Ankara, they held talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan regarding the current situation and possible paths to achieving peace.
Positions of the Parties and Expectations
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated earlier on July 23 that Kyiv would insist on an immediate and complete ceasefire during negotiations with Moscow. He expressed this position in the context of the night attack by Russia on the Sumy region, which left over 220,000 residents without electricity due to damage to energy infrastructure caused by Russian drones.
“No one is expecting an easy road. Of course, it will be a very difficult conversation. The projects are diametrically opposed,” said Putin’s spokesperson regarding expectations from the negotiations.
According to information from the Russian side, the meeting also discusses draft memorandums for conflict resolution, as well as issues of mutual exchanges between the parties. It is expected that the negotiations will be challenging due to significant differences in the approaches of both delegations.