Ukraine’s Zelenskyy headed to Turkiye in bid to resuscitate peace talks

Meeting reportedly acceptable up with US envoy, but Moscow says nary Russian representatives volition attend.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said helium hopes to revive talks implicit ending the warfare caused by Russia’s full-scale penetration 2 years agone during a travel to Turkiye connected Wednesday.

On a abbreviated circuit of European allies to sermon enactment aboriginal this week, Zelenskyy wrote connected societal media connected Tuesday that Ukraine is “preparing to reinvigorate negotiations” and has developed solutions that helium volition “propose to partners”.

While Zelenskyy did not disclose details of his trip, quality agencies reported that helium would conscionable United States peculiar envoy Steve Witkoff, arsenic good arsenic President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, successful Ankara.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters that nary Russian representatives volition instrumentality portion successful talks connected November 19, but that President Vladimir Putin was unfastened to conversations with the US and Turkiye connected the results of the talks.

“For now, these contacts are taking spot without Russian participation. We volition await accusation connected what would really beryllium discussed successful Istanbul,” helium said during his regular league telephone with reporters.

‘Re-engage’

A elder Ukrainian authoritative told the AFP quality bureau that Zelenskyy’s “main extremity is for the Americans to re-engage” successful bid efforts.

President Donald Trump has exhibited an erratic attack arsenic helium has sought to fulfill his boast that helium would beryllium capable to bring a swift extremity to the war, which began with the Russian penetration successful February 2022.

Ukraine has engaged successful concentrated diplomatic efforts to ward disconnected immoderate motion that Trump’s impatience could spot the US springiness up its bid to broker a ceasefire.

Ukraine and Russia person antecedently held respective rounds of talks successful Istanbul, mediated by the US and Turkiye, but nary face-to-face talks person taken spot since their delegations met successful Istanbul successful July.

Those earlier talks made small advancement towards ending hostilities, though captive exchanges were arranged to repatriate captives and immoderate bodies.

Zelenskyy’s societal media station connected Tuesday noted: “We are besides moving to reconstruct POW exchanges and bring our prisoners of warfare home.”

Macron and Zelenskyy met successful Paris connected Monday arsenic the Ukrainian president visits Western allies to question further subject enactment (File: AFP)

The Ukrainian president wrote his societal media enactment portion successful Spain to sermon enactment with Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.

Zelenskyy has been connected a mini circuit to sojourn Kyiv’s keenest backers, arsenic helium seeks further aerial defences for usage against concentrated Russian occurrence aimed astatine Ukraine’s vigor infrastructure arsenic wintertime brings freezing temperatures.

On Monday, helium met President Emmanuel Macron successful France to motion an accord that provides for Kyiv to get up to 100 combatant jets and different hardware, including drones.

Commenting connected the deal, Peskov said that Paris “is successful nary mode contributing to peace, but alternatively fuelling militaristic and pro-war sentiment”.

Ukrainian forces person concentrated occurrence connected Russia’s lucrative lipid industry, arsenic good arsenic vigor systems.

On Tuesday, Ukraine launched an aerial onslaught connected powerfulness stations successful the Russian-occupied portion of Ukraine’s eastbound Donetsk region, leaving galore areas without power, according to Russian-appointed officials.

Attacks by Russian drones overnight sparked aggregate fires successful the cardinal Ukrainian metropolis of Dnipro, portion a 17-year-old miss was killed and 10 different radical were wounded successful a Russian rocket onslaught connected the municipality of Berestyn successful the northeastern Kharkiv region.