US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said he does not believe that the negotiations between the Ukrainian and Russian delegations in Istanbul will lead to any breakthrough.

Source: Rubio speaking to reporters on Thursday 15 May in Antalya after an informal meeting of NATO foreign ministers, as reported by European Pravda

Details: Rubio confirmed that representatives from the US and Türkiye will take part in the negotiations between Ukraine and Russia, which has sent a "lower-level group".

Quote: "But I want to be frank: We don’t have high expectations for what will happen tomorrow. Frankly, at this point, I think it’s abundantly clear that the only way we're going to have a breakthrough here is between President Trump and President Putin." [N.B. Ukrainska Pravda does not recognise Putin as president – ed.]

Details: Rubio said he believes Putin is ready to talk to Trump and to "determine once and for all if there's a path forward and what that path is".

The secretary of state also highlighted the level of the Russian delegation, which in his words "is not indicative of one that's going to lead to a major breakthrough".

"I frankly do not believe that we're going to have a breakthrough here until President Trump sits face-to-face with President Putin and determines what his intentions are moving forward," he said, adding that he believes Trump shares this assessment.

Background:

• Zelenskyy travelled to Ankara in anticipation of the arrival of Russian leader Vladimir Putin. But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced that Putin would not travel to Istanbul for negotiations with the Ukrainian delegation.
• Instead, Russia sent a low-level delegation headed by Putin aide Vladimir Medinsky.
• Despite this, Zelenskyy decided to send a Ukrainian delegation led by Umierov to the talks in Istanbul.

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