President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky held a meeting in Kyiv with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan. During the talks, Zelensky thanked Turkey and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for their active support of efforts aimed at achieving a just and sustainable peace in Ukraine, as well as for their assistance in organizing the negotiations between Ukraine and Russia that took place in Istanbul on May 16.
This is reported by Kyiv24
Ukraine’s Position on the Negotiation Process
According to the president, Ukraine highly values Turkey’s position on the “unacceptability of ultimatum language in the negotiation process.” He emphasized that the Russian side has not yet provided the promised “memorandum,” which was supposed to be delivered immediately after the prisoner exchange. Neither Ukraine nor Turkey has received any official documents from Moscow, and no agenda has been formed for further negotiations.
“We have not received any documents from them regarding this. We do not have an agenda either. Turkey has also not received any documents from Russia, which is a sign of disrespect towards the country as the host party. We are ready for negotiations, but they must be properly prepared.”
The Need for Sanction Pressure and Turkey’s Support
During the conversation, special attention was given to the issue of strengthening sanctions against Russia. Zelensky emphasized the importance of further pressure on the Kremlin to compel it to end the war. The president stated that Russia must stop imposing its conditions on the world and begin an honest negotiation process.
Ukraine also expressed gratitude to Turkey for its consistent support of the country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. The Turkish side confirmed the high-level meeting took place but did not disclose the details of the negotiations.
During the visit, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan also held meetings with the head of the President’s Office Andriy Yermak and Defense Minister Rustem Umerov. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha stated that Kyiv is ready for the next round of negotiations with Russia but expects a specific memorandum from Moscow with proposals for a ceasefire.