Trump to skip Ukraine peace talks, sends special envoys to Turkey: Report | World News

US President Donald Trump indicated he would not attend what could be the first direct peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in three years. But US senior envoys, Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg, will reportedly travel to anbul on Thursday to attend the talks, sources familiar with the plans told Reuters. According to a senior US official, the delegation aims to revive Trump’s previously stalled push for a peace deal.
The visit is part of a renewed effort Trump to broker a ceasefire in a war that began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and has since killed hundreds of thousands on both sides.
Will Putin be present during the talks?
Putin on Sunday proposed direct negotiations with Ukraine in anbul on Thursday “without any preconditions.”
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday he would only attend the anbul talks if Putin is present. In a final confirmation on Wednesday night, the Kremlin said that Russian President Vladimir Putin is not attending the peace talks with Ukraine.
However, the Associated Press later reported that Putin’s aide, Vladimir Medinsky, would lead the Russian delegation. The team will also include Deputy Defense Miner Alexander Fomin, Deputy Foreign Miner Mikhail Galuzin, and Igor Kostyukov, chief of the General Staff’s main directorate.
Trump’s role
After the Kremlin’s delegation announcement, a US official confirmed Trump’s absence from the meeting. The US President, currently in the Middle East for meetings with officials in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar, had said on Monday he would fly to anbul if necessary. On Wednesday, during his flight from Saudi Arabia to Qatar, Trump told reporters: “He’d [Putin] like me to be there, and that’s a possibility…We’re going to find out.”

In an interview on Fox Business network’s Mornings with Maria on Tuesday, Kellogg said that Zelenskyy would be present in anbul and implied that Trump would also attend if Putin confirms his presence.Story continues below this ad
“We’re hoping President Putin shows up as well, and then President Trump will be there,” Kellogg said. “This could be an absolutely incredible meeting. We can get peace, I really believe, pretty fast if all three leaders sit down and talk.”
Meanwhile, NATO miners gather in Turkey
Separately but concurrently, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other top NATO diplomats are convening in Antalya, Turkey, for a meeting that will lay the groundwork for next month’s NATO summit in The Hague. The NATO meeting is focused on long-term European security and military spending.
On Wednesday, Rubio met with Ukrainian Foreign Miner Andrii Sybiha, who also held talks with German Foreign Miner Johann Wadephul and Turkish Foreign Miner Hakan Fidan, according to the Turkish foreign minry.
European diplomats told Reuters that the European Commission has been tasked with preparing a tougher package of sanctions if Russia refuses to enter a ceasefire.
(With inputs from Reuters, AP)
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