According to Russian and Ukrainian negotiators, the talks pave the way for a meeting between Presidents Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky.
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Announcements of progress, at least on the diplomatic field. The talks between Russia and Ukraine on Tuesday March 29 in Istanbul were “substantial”, negotiators from both sides said after three hours of talks in Istanbul, Turkey. They pave the way for a meeting between Presidents Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky,
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The head of the Russian delegation and representative of the Kremlin, Vladimir Medinsky, said that the proposals “clear” of Ukraine with a view to an agreement were going to be “studied very soon and submitted to the President” Vladimir Poutine.
For his part, the chief Ukrainian negotiator, David Arakhamia, also considered that the conditions were now “sufficient” for a summit meeting between Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky. Since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24, Moscow had always dismissed this proposal from kyiv.
David Arakhamia clarified that kyiv was demanding a “international agreement” signed by several guarantor countries which “will act in a manner analogous to Article 5 of NATO and even more firmly”. Article 5 of the Atlantic Alliance treaty stipulates that an attack against one of its members is an attack against all.
In a sign that the discussions have progressed, the Russian Deputy Minister of Defense affirmed that Moscow was going “radically reduce [son] military activity in the direction of kyiv and Cherniguiv”, in the north of the country. A promise which nevertheless still awaits its translation on the ground.