Russia confirms Putin won't be at Ukraine talks in Turkey
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President Donald Trump says he is skipping Russia-Ukraine peace talks in Istanbul this week and downplayed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision not to attend.
For days, President Donald Trump repeatedly floated the possibility of scrapping his Middle East travel schedule — one his team meticulously crafted for weeks — and adding a stop to personally mediate Ukraine-Russia peace talks in Turkey.
Moscow thinks it’s winning in Ukraine and can play hardball diplomatically. Washington sees costly, incremental gains and an unrealistic negotiating position.
Russia has called for direct negotiations with Ukraine in Istanbul, but Ukraine’s European allies maintain Putin needs to be pressured into a ceasefire first.
Leaders of four major European countries visited Kyiv, amid a push for Moscow to agree to a truce and launch peace talks on ending the nearly three-year conflict.
Sir Keir Starmer is joining the leaders of France, Germany and Poland - the first time they have travelled to Ukraine at the same time.