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Talks between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul ended with both sides promising to exchange 1,000 prisoners of war, but failed to reach an unconditional ceasefire agreement. The exchange would be the largest since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Ahead of Friday's meeting, Ukraine demanded a complete and unconditional ceasefire for at least 30 days, an exchange of all prisoners of war, and a meeting between the Ukrainian and Russian presidents, at which genuine peace talks would begin, as long as the ceasefire was implemented.
“Our position - if the Russians refuse a full and unconditional ceasefire and an end to the killings, tough sanctions must follow,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a post on X after the talks concluded. “The pressure on Russia must continue until Russia is ready to end the war.”
While the delegations were speaking in Istanbul, Ukraine's European supporters, many of whom gathered in Albania for the European Political Community summit, held a phone call with US President Donald Trump.
Later on Friday, French President Emmanuel Macron said Trump planned to hold phone calls "within the next two hours or two days" with "the Russian side to clarify what had happened [in Istanbul] and to move forward."
Trump had said on Thursday that "nothing will happen until Putin and I meet."
"The Russian stance is clearly unacceptable and not for the first time, and as a result of that meeting with President Zelensky and the discussion with President Trump, we are now closely coordinating and coordinating our responses," British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said after the call.
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