A Ukrainian delegation arrived in Istanbul today for a second round of direct talks with Russia, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry confirmed.
“The Ukrainian delegation has arrived in Istanbul. The meeting is scheduled for this afternoon,” ministry spokesman Heorhii Tykhyi said, according to the state-run Ukrinform news agency.
A Russian delegation also arrived in Istanbul late last night.
The talks come a day after President Volodymyr Zelensky approved the composition of the Kiev delegation, which will once again be led by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov. Umerov also led the Ukrainian delegation during the previous round of talks, held in Istanbul on May 16.
That round resulted in an agreement on a large-scale prisoner exchange involving 1,000 prisoners from each side.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said earlier that they had proposed holding the next round of direct talks with Ukraine on June 2 in Istanbul, and that the delegation would be led by Vladimir Medinsky, an advisor to President Vladimir Putin.
According to sources in the Turkish Foreign Ministry, the talks are scheduled to begin today at 1:00 p.m. local time (12:00 CET) and will be held at the Ciragan Palace in Istanbul, AA writes.
