Lavrov won't attend possible Russia-Ukraine peace talks in Istanbul, Russian media says

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will not participate in the possible Russia-Ukraine talks set for May 15 in Istanbul, the pro-government media outlet Kommersant reported on May 14, citing unnamed sources.

Earlier reporting from the Washington Post cited a former Russian official who claimed Lavrov and Putin’s foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, would represent Moscow in the talks.

Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed hosting direct talks in Turkey between Kyiv and Moscow. While President Volodymyr Zelensky has said he will attend the talks, the Kremlin has so far stayed quiet about the possibility of Putin attending.

Moscow has not yet officially named the composition of its delegation. Russian lawmaker Leonid Slutsky said the details may be announced late on May 14.

Zelensky confirmed he will meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara and said that both he and Erdogan are ready to travel to Istanbul if Putin agrees to attend the talks.

U.S. President Donald Trump is not expected to join the meeting, unnamed Turkish officials cited told Bloomberg, but added that they did not fully rule out a last-minute visit.

The U.S. president announced on May 13 that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other senior U.S. officials will attend the talks. According to Reuters, Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg are also expected in Istanbul.

Zelensky and Putin last met face-to-face in December 2019 in Paris during a Normandy Format summit. Since the start of the full-scale invasion, there have been no direct talks between the two leaders.

Despite the hype, EU’s latest Russia sanctions ‘not as strong as they should be’

The European Union’s 17th package of sanctions against Russia, agreed on May 14, is being hailed in Brussels as a symbol of steady resolve. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen welcomed the move, insisting it would “keep the pressure high on the Kremlin.” But outside the EU bubble, critics see it as another incremental move that fails to match the urgency of the moment, and behind closed doors, even EU officials acknowledge the package was watered down during negotiations. The s

The Kyiv IndependentAlex Cadier