Meeting will take place, but not today: RBC-Ukraine learns new date for Istanbul talks
Ukraine's Minister of Defense Rustem Umerov (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
The delegations of Ukraine and the Russian Federation will hold negotiations in Istanbul on Friday, May 16.
According to sources, the meeting between the Ukrainian and Russian delegations will take place tomorrow, May 16, in Istanbul.
The talks were initially planned for today, May 15. Moreover, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated he was ready for direct negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin. However, Putin ignored the offer.
At the same time, another RBC-Ukraine source added that the Ukrainian side will decide on the date and time of the next round of negotiations after arriving in Istanbul.
Who will represent Ukraine
Earlier, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that he had ultimately decided to send a Ukrainian delegation to the negotiations with Russia in Istanbul.
"I have decided to send our delegation to Istanbul, but not everyone," the president said.
He clarified that the Head of the Security Service of Ukraine Vasyl Maliuk, and the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, Andrii Hnatov, would not attend the talks.
"But the delegation will be led by Ukraine's Minister of Defense, even though there will be no counterpart from the Russian side," Zelenskyy added.
The president has already officially signed a decree approving the composition of the Ukrainian delegation for the talks with Russia.
Who will represent Russia
The Russians had long withheld the composition of their delegation. It was only last night that Vladimir Putin officially approved its members.
According to the published information, the Russian delegation will include:
- Vladimir Medinsky – Putin's aide (head of the delegation);
- Mikhail Galuzin – Deputy Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation (delegation member);
- Igor Kostyukov – Director of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Russian General Staff (delegation member);
- Alexander Fomin – Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation (delegation member).
Other participants
Earlier, it was reported that US President Donald Trump might fly to Istanbul for the negotiations. However, today he stated that Russian President Vladimir Putin did not come to the talks with Ukraine in Türkiye because he himself was not there.
Trump also said he might fly to Türkiye tomorrow, May 16, for the talks, but only "if it's appropriate."
It is known that the United States may be represented by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has already arrived in Türkiye. However, Rubio's initial purpose for the visit was to attend an informal meeting of NATO foreign ministers.
More details about the negotiations between Ukraine and Russia can be found in the material by RBC-Ukraine.
