Ukraine Requests Turkey Aid for Zelenskyy-Putin Summit

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha announced on Wednesday that Kyiv has requested Turkey's assistance in arranging a summit between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, as part of efforts to revive stalled peace negotiations amid the ongoing war now in its fifth year. The proposal, first raised during a briefing in Kyiv on Tuesday, seeks to host the meeting in any neutral capital outside Russia or its ally Belarus.

Sybiha emphasized the urgency of direct leader-level talks to generate momentum in diplomacy. "We are advocating for a summit meeting now to bring new momentum to diplomacy," he told reporters. Ukraine has approached other potential host countries as well, viewing the encounter as essential to breaking the deadlock in U.S.-led mediation efforts. Zelenskyy has expressed willingness to meet Putin if it advances a peace agreement, while the Kremlin has indicated that such a summit would only occur after reaching a preliminary deal for the leaders to endorse.

The push comes as negotiations brokered by Washington have slowed significantly. U.S. envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff have conducted multiple rounds of trilateral talks...