Donald Trump yesterday insisted there would be no peace deal agreed for Ukraine ‘until Putin and I get together’.
The US President said it was ‘obvious’ Vladimir Putin was going to snub peace talks due to take place in Turkey.
The Russian dictator, having called for direct talks with Volodymyr Zelensky, declined to travel to Istanbul for face-to-face negotiations due to start yesterday.
It prompted the Ukrainian president to condemn Russia‘s ‘theatrical’ behaviour.
The Kremlin has kept the world guessing for days by refusing to say whether or not Putin would be there.
Last night, President Trump appeared to reveal why Putin decided to ’empty-chair’ Mr Zelensky. Mr Trump, on board Air Force One, said: ‘Nothing is going to happen until Putin and I get together, OK?
‘Obviously, he was going to go but he thought I was going to go. He wasn’t going if I wasn’t there. I don’t believe anything is going to happen, if you like it or not, until we get together. But we are going to have to get it solved because too many people are dying.’
Mr Trump is on the last leg of his Middle East tour and yesterday he arrived in Abu Dhabi.
Donald Trump yesterday insisted there would be no peace deal agreed for Ukraine ‘until Putin and I get together’
Putin, having called for direct talks with Volodymyr Zelensky, declined to travel to Istanbul for face-to-face negotiations due to start yesterday
Talks between the Ukrainian and Russian delegations that have travelled to Istanbul could take place today without their respective presidents.
But the two sides remain far apart and no breakthrough is anticipated. Ukraine wants an immediate ceasefire whereas Russia wants to address what it regards as the core issues behind the conflict.
Its set of demands for post-war Ukraine include no Western military assistance or membership of Nato or any alternative defence alliance.
Yesterday, Mr Zelensky reiterated his belief that Russia ‘is not serious’ about peace.
He said: ‘He [Putin] set the date [for talks]. I responded. I reacted immediately. I said I would be there on that date. All parties must demonstrate willingness to take part in negotiations and the first step must be an unconditional ceasefire.
‘I am here, we are ready for direct negotiations. We have a mandate from the Ukrainian people to agree certain steps which will lead to the end of the war.’
The Ukrainian delegation sent to Istanbul is led by the country’s defence minister. Mr Zelensky remained in Ankara where he met the Turkish president Recep Erdogan.
The Ukrainian and Russian delegations are due to meet at the Dolmabahce Palace in Istanbul.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Vladimir Putin of ‘not taking negotiations seriously’
Firefighters work at the site of a private enterprise hit by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, on the outskirts of Sumy, Ukraine May 15, 2025
President Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine Keith Kellogg and foreign envoy Steve Witkoff are also due to attend the talks.
Moscow is widely thought to be attempting to delay the peace process so it can make further progress on the battlefield and seize more Ukrainian territory.
The head of the Russian delegation, presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, said in Istanbul yesterday: ‘The task of these direct negotiations with Ukraine is to establish long-term peace sooner or later by eliminating the root causes of this conflict.’
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Donald Trump says there will be no peace in Ukraine until he and Putin get together, as Russian despot snubs talks with Zelensky in Turkey