KYIV – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will only attend upcoming talks in Turkey if Russian President Vladimir Putin is present, a senior Ukrainian official said Tuesday, ruling out negotiations with lower-level Russian representatives.
Zelensky has agreed to a face-to-face meeting with Putin in Istanbul on Thursday, following a surprise proposal by the Russian leader. The move directly challenges Moscow to engage at the highest level, amid growing international pressure for a ceasefire.
Putin’s proposal was seen as a counter to a Western-backed call for a 30-day ceasefire, but the Kremlin has yet to confirm whether Putin will actually attend the meeting in person—appearing caught off guard by Zelensky’s swift acceptance.
Speaking in an interview on YouTube with exiled Russian journalist Alexander Plyushchev, Mykhaylo Podolyak, a top adviser to Zelensky, made Ukraine’s position clear. “This is not a presidential-level meeting unless Putin himself is there,” he said. “There is one decision-maker on Ukraine’s side—and one decision-maker in Russia. Everything else is just formalities without results.”
Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump, currently visiting the Middle East, said Monday he would consider joining the talks in Istanbul “if he thought it would be helpful.” A White House official, speaking anonymously to CNN, noted Trump’s participation would hinge on whether Putin commits to attending.
As diplomatic momentum builds, all eyes are now on Moscow to respond to Zelensky’s bold challenge for direct peace talks at the highest level.
“Our position is very principled and very strong,” Yermak said during a conference in Copenhagen.
If held, the Istanbul meeting would mark the first direct talks between Ukrainian and Russian leaders since the failed March 2022 peace talks, which ended without an agreement.
Later on Tuesday, sources told Reuters that Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg, envoys linked to U.S. President Donald Trump, are planning to travel to Istanbul in anticipation of possible negotiations.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan confirmed his country’s readiness to host the talks and urged both Kyiv and Moscow to seize the “window of opportunity” for peace. China, a key Russian ally, has also expressed support for a “binding peace agreement” acceptable to all parties.
Putin, for his part, has called for the talks to address what he describes as the “root causes” of the conflict. While he has not ruled out a ceasefire emerging from Istanbul, he insists Ukraine must cede occupied regions and abandon its ambitions to join NATO.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Moscow hopes to use the talks as a platform to discuss the “denazification of the Kyiv regime” and the recognition of Russian control over occupied territories.
The Kremlin has long pushed the narrative that Ukraine is ruled by neo-Nazis—a claim widely dismissed by Western governments. “Denazification” and “demilitarization” were among the stated goals behind Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
As diplomatic efforts gather momentum, the onus remains on Moscow to confirm Putin’s participation—seen by Kyiv and others as the true test of Russia’s intent to pursue a negotiated peace.
