A new round of talks to end the Ukraine conflict began in Istanbul, Turkey on Tuesday morning. Moscow and Kiev have previously held three rounds of in-person talks and further contacts via video link, but the exchanges have failed to yield any tangible result.
“We hope the meetings will be beneficial for both countries and the region, as Turkey is deeply worried about the conflict,” President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, welcoming the negotiators. He also expressed hope that the summit would pave a way for direct talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Monday that Kiev expected “humanitarian questions” to be resolved during the talks, adding that “the maximum program is reaching an agreement on a ceasefire.”
Turkey also hosted talks between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Kuleba in Antalya on March 10.