Ukraine considering various platforms for possible peace talks with Russia – president

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said this at a briefing on Monday, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.

"We are considering Istanbul, the Vatican, Geneva, or another city in Switzerland as a potential venue for the meeting. We are not choosing an alternative over our Turkish colleagues — we are approaching this from the standpoint of results. The host country must be capable of ensuring and organizing the appropriate level of delegation presence. We want whichever platform is selected to be able to offer the highest level of participation possible. If it's technical teams — then the highest-level technical teams. If we are ready for a leaders' summit — then real decision-makers. Only based on these criteria will we consider and make our choice. And all sides must support the chosen platform for the meeting and for dialogue," Zelensky said.

He once again thanked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for organizing the meeting in Turkey, which took place at the end of last week.

On May 15, Zelensky arrived in Turkey and held talks with Erdogan. The negotiations lasted nearly three hours.

On May 10, Ukraine, along with its allies — France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Poland — proposed a 30-day unconditional ceasefire. In case of refusal, Ukraine's allies intended to impose stronger sanctions against Russia.

Later, Putin proposed holding direct negotiations with Ukraine "where they were interrupted" in 2022 — in Istanbul, Turkey.

Zelensky stated that he expected Russia to agree to a ceasefire starting Monday and personally awaited Putin in Turkey on May 15.

However, Putin sent a low-level delegation to Turkey. In response, Zelensky formed a Ukrainian delegation led by the Minister of Defense.

The only outcome of the talks in Istanbul was an agreement on a prisoner exchange in a 1,000-for-1,000 format.