Contacts this week with Türkiye, Gulf, Europe on hosting Russia talks: Zelensky

KIEV

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced Tuesday that contacts are set this week with countries, including Türkiye, that could host a potential summit with Russia to end the over three-and-a-half-year war.

“Now, this week, there will be contacts with Türkiye, there will be contacts with the Gulf countries, with the countries of Europe, which can be platforms for talks with the Russians,” Zelensky said in an evening video address on Telegram.

He pledged Ukraine would prepare "to the maximum" for negotiations, stressing the need for partners' confirmation.

Zelensky added that success hinges on world leaders, especially the U.S., applying pressure on Russia to engage.

“New steps are needed, new pressure: sanctions, tariffs – all this must be on the table,” he said, noting discussions on this with U.S. Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg in Kiev a day earlier.

He claimed Russia signals evasion of talks, changeable only through stronger pressure on Moscow.

Last week, Zelensky named Türkiye, Austria and Switzerland as possible venues for a direct meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, amid U.S. President Donald Trump's mediation efforts.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Sunday that Putin informed Trump of Moscow's readiness for continued direct peace talks during their latest call, but emphasized high-level meetings like a Putin-Zelensky summit must be "very well prepared."

Türkiye has facilitated key diplomacy since the conflict's start, hosting three rounds of direct talks in Istanbul on May 16, June 2 and July 23, 2025.Those sessions yielded major prisoner exchanges and draft memorandums outlining positions for a potential peace deal.