"I’m Here," Zelenskyy Said As He Arrived In Turkey For Ceasefire Talks To Find Out Putin Is Not Coming
“I feel disrespect from Russia. No meeting time, no agenda, no high-level delegation - this is personal disrespect. To Erdoğan, to Trump,” Zelenskiy said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has called for "direct talks" with Ukraine in Istanbul, Turkey, on May 15, but Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived there, saying, “I’m here,” as Putin didn’t show.
On May 11, Putin called for direct and lasting peace negotiations with Ukraine to be held in Turkey, saying Russia is ready to engage in “serious” peace talks, which would be the first direct talks between the two countries' leaders since March 2022.
Zelenskyy responded to Putin’s proposal, saying it is a positive sign that Russia is considering ending the war and that he is ready to meet with Russia but expecting “Russia to confirm a ceasefire – full, lasting, and reliable – starting tomorrow, May 12.”
It is a positive sign that the Russians have finally begun to consider ending the war. The entire world has been waiting for this for a very long time. And the very first step in truly ending any war is a ceasefire.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) May 11, 2025
There is no point in continuing the killing even for a single…
On Thursday, May 15, Zelenskyy arrived in Turkey as promised but to find out that Putin is not coming and sent a low-ranking delegation instead, which Zelenskyy called a “decorative” or “sham” delegation that doesn’t have real authority to make decisions.
“I feel disrespect from Russia. No meeting time, no agenda, no high-level delegation - this is personal disrespect. To Erdoğan, to Trump,” Zelenskiy said, Reuters reported.
The talks proceeded with the delegations meeting separately and with Turkish and U.S. diplomats, “to attempt at least the first steps toward de-escalation, the first steps toward ending the war – namely, a ceasefire,” according to Zelenskyy.
The Russian delegation, led by Vladimir Medinsky, stated that they had clear directives from President Putin and were fully authorized to negotiate, adding that any peace agreement must include a permanent ban on Ukraine joining NATO, demilitarization of Ukraine and for Ukraine to withdraw its military forces from the four Ukrainian oblasts (Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson) that Russia claims to have annexed.
A limited agreement was reached to exchange 1,000 prisoners from each side but Russia still rejected Ukraine's calls for an unconditional ceasefire and continued to insist on conditions that Ukraine finds unacceptable, according to the Kyiv Independent.
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