Uncertainty Remains Over Tangible Outcomes
The ceasefire negotiations between Russia and Ukraine are scheduled to begin in Istanbul, T?rkiye, at 6:30 p.m. KST on May 16, 2025.
AFP, citing sources from the Turkish Foreign Ministry, reported that a trilateral meeting among Russia, Ukraine, and T?rkiye is set to take place.
Immediately prior to this meeting, a separate trilateral meeting was held among the United States, Ukraine, and T?rkiye.
Russia and Ukraine had originally planned to hold negotiations in Istanbul the previous day, but the talks were postponed to May 16, 2025, after both sides engaged in a war of nerves outside the official venue. Ukraine stated that the Russian delegation members held relatively low-ranking positions, which undermined their representativeness.
The Ukrainian delegation includes Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, and Presidential Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak.
In contrast, Russia dispatched Presidential Aide Vladimir Medinsky, Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin, Chief of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Russian Armed Forces (GRU) Igor Kostyukov, and Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin.
Some observers believe that it will be difficult to achieve any substantive results during the negotiations between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations on May 16, 2025.
The Ukrainian side has identified a ceasefire as its main objective for these talks, while Russia maintains that the negotiations are simply a continuation of those that were suspended in 2022.
During the negotiations that broke down in March 2022, the Russian side demanded Ukraine's neutrality, recognition of Crimea (which Russia forcibly annexed in 2014) as Russian territory, and recognition of the independence of pro-Russian separatist regions in eastern Ukraine, effectively demanding Ukraine's surrender.
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