Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was ready to meet Russia's President Vladimir Putin in Turkey to discuss peace talks, in an interview with CNN Turk published on November 1. He said a meeting between the leaders is essential and that Turkey can be a practical and realistic mediator of future talks between Moscow and Kyiv.
The comments came ahead of expected technical-level talks between Ukraine, Russia and the US in Abu Dhabi later in November. Kyiv hopes those discussions could pave the way for an eventual leaders' summit, likely involving US President Donald Trump, which it sees as crucial for resolving territorial issues. The Kremlin has long avoided a face-to-face meeting between Zelensky and Putin, proposing a phone call instead, the Kyiv Independent reported.
Zelensky met Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Istanbul on October 31 to discuss bilateral relations and security in the Black Sea. Turkey has balanced ties with Kyiv and Moscow, maintaining economic ties with Russia while providing arms to Ukraine. Ankara played a central role in establishing the Black Sea Grain Initiative in 2022, enabling safe maritime grain exports before Moscow exited the deal a year later, and has hosted three rounds of peace talks between Ukrainian and Russian delegations in 2025.
Zelensky's comments came as Washington pressed to revive peace talks that stalled earlier in the year over Russia's demand that Kyiv cede Donbas, a partially occupied region in Ukraine's east. In the interview, Zelensky said the technical talks would focus on the possibility of a partial energy and maritime ceasefire and exchanges of captives. The leaders' summit would then tackle a path toward a full ceasefire and security guarantees, he said. Zelensky rejected formally recognizing occupied territories as part of Russia and said a ceasefire should be established along the current front lines as a first step toward further talks.
