Istanbul — it’s where Asia meets Europe, but as we now know, not where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin. The world's media descended on the Turkish city on May 15,

Vladimir Medinsky, the head of Russia's delegation at peace talks on Ukraine in Turkey, said on Thursday that Moscow's aim was to secure a long-lasting peace with Kyiv by looking for common ground and removing the reasons for the conflict.

A FTER A WEEK of brinkmanship, Volodymyr Zelensky departed for peace negotiations in Turkey still unsure who he would be talking to. Vladimir Putin stayed silent for nearly four days, before turning down the Ukrainian’s dare of a face-to-face meeting.

As he heads to Turkey for negotiations, Zelensky is betting that Trump will soon realize that Russia does not want to make peace.

Russian President Vladimir Putin currently has no plans to travel to Istanbul for peace talks with Ukraine, the Kremlin said on Thursday, but the Russian delegation is there and ready to meet the Ukrainian team.

President Donald Trump again teased his possible attendance in Istanbul for the Russia-Ukraine peace talks on Friday

The Russian delegation has been waiting for the Ukrainian delegation for almost a day in Istanbul, while the head of the Kiev regime, Vladimir Zelensky, is putting on a show in Ankara. This was stated by the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova.

TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has sharply criticized Vladimir Zelensky, dismissing him as a "nothing man" in response to Zelensky’s demand for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s personal presence at upcoming talks in Istanbul on Ukraine.