Ukraine: No peace talks until Putin and I get together — Trump

US President, Donald Trump has said that significant progress in Ukraine peace talks is unlikely until he and President Vladmir Putin meet in person.

Trump responded to a reporter on board Air Force One on whether he was disappointed by the level of the delegation that Russia has sent to Turkey.

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“Look, nothing’s going to happen until Putin and I get together. Okay?

“And obviously he wasn’t going to go. He was going to go, but he thought I was going to go.

“He wasn’t going if I wasn’t there and I don’t believe anything’s going to happen, whether you like it or not, until he and I get together, but we’re going to have to get it solved because too many people are dying,” he said.

Ukraine President, Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking about Russia’s delegation in Istanbul, said: “Officially, I’m not aware of the Russian’s level [of representation]. But from what we’ve seen they look like stand-in props.”

Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova hit back at Zelensky’s criticism of Moscow’s delegation almost immediately.

Speaking at a briefing in Moscow, she called him a “dummy”, a “clown” and a “loser”.

Lavrov called Zelensky “pathetic” for trying to persuade Putin to turn up in person.

“At first Zelensky made some kind of statements that demanded Putin come personally. Well, a pathetic person,” he said in a televised address to diplomats in Moscow.

Earlier, UK Prime Minister, Keir Starmer said Putin’s failure to take Volodymyr Zelensky up on his offer of face-to-face peace talks is further evidence of the Russian president “dragging his feet”.

While on a visit to Tirana, Albania, the prime minister was asked what his message was to the Russian leader.

He said: “It is Putin who is causing the delay in a ceasefire.

“Ukraine has long been clear, several months ago now, that they would have a 30-day unconditional ceasefire, and we have long said that it’s Putin who is standing in the way of that peace.”

The head of Russia’s delegation in the talks, presidential aide, Vladimir Medinsky, has confirmed he is in Istanbul and said Russia wants to address the “root causes of the conflict” and establish lasting peace in Ukraine.

This suggests Russian demands stay the same, with reluctance to accept a 30-day ceasefire demanded by Ukraine and its allies.

Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov stated that the Russian delegation has been waiting for the Ukrainians in Istanbul since this morning.

He added that there are “no plans for Putin to travel to Turkey or meet Trump over the next few days”.

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