Putin’s Potential Attendance at Turkey Peace Talks in Question: Kremlin List Suggests Absence.

Russia’s delegation for peace talks with Ukraine, set to take place in Turkey, has been announced, but notably, President Vladimir V. Putin is missing from the list. This suggests that Putin won’t be meeting face-to-face with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, who has previously called Putin a murderer. Despite initial indications that former U.S. President Donald Trump might attend the talks, he has decided to skip them and will instead visit the United Arab Emirates. Trump stated that Secretary of State Marco Rubio would represent him. Russia’s delegation will be led by Vladimir Medinsky, a close aide to Putin, along with other senior military and intelligence officials. The stakes for both Ukraine and Russia are high, given the intensity of the conflict and the ongoing loss of military personnel and equipment. Ukraine, which had ventured into Russia’s Kursk region and suffered territorial losses, emphasizes the need for U.S. security guarantees. Recent negotiations have seen agreements on temporary ceasefires, but with mixed results. The Ukrainian president has expressed readiness for any negotiation format and appealed to international pressure to end hostilities.

Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/14/world/europe/putin-ukraine-peace-talks-turkey.html