Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he is prepared to hold direct discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Turkey, seeking assistance from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to facilitate the summit.
However, Zelensky firmly rejected key Russian demands, declaring that Kyiv would never surrender the eastern Donbas region or formally acknowledge Russia’s claim to Crimea. Speaking in an interview broadcast by CNN Turk, the Ukrainian leader said yielding such land would run contrary to Ukraine’s constitution, the Kyiv Post reported.
Zelensky argued that direct negotiations between national leaders are now vital because technical working groups and diplomatic envoys lack the power to settle fundamental issues. He said discussions between heads of state should concentrate on a frontline truce, an enforcement mechanism to track compliance, security guarantees, national rebuilding and the eventual condition of occupied regions.
Kremlin insists on Moscow venue
Russian officials quickly pushed back on the prospect of traveling abroad for talks with Kyiv’s leadership. Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov told reporters on Saturday that Putin had never dismissed dialogue with the Ukrainian leader, but insisted any in-person meeting should happen on Russian soil, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.
If Zelensky genuinely desires negotiations, he is free to visit the Russian capital, Ushakov said, as reported by China Media Group. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov made a similar point on the sidelines of a Group of 20 gathering in Atlanta, saying Russia would guarantee Zelensky’s personal safety if he traveled to Moscow, Cuban news agency Prensa Latina reported.
Ukrainian leaders have consistently rejected traveling to the nation waging war against them, leaving the logistics of any potential presidential summit at a standstill.
Regional diplomacy and G20 prospects
The competing diplomatic overtures follow Zelensky’s visit to Istanbul, where Erdogan hosted him for bilateral talks on Saturday. Erdogan cautioned that the conflict risked expanding across the Black Sea and urged restraint regarding civilian shipping, emphasizing that a just peace leaves no losers, Xinhua news agency reported.
Speculation regarding a potential high-level encounter has also focused on the upcoming G20 leaders’ summit scheduled for December in Miami. U.S. President Donald Trump has suggested that Putin and Zelensky could meet face-to-face in the near future, telling reporters that significant progress could occur.
Washington formally invited Putin to attend the Florida conference in September. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov previously labeled a sideline summit between Putin and Zelensky in Miami as impossible, though Moscow confirmed it would consider the invitation to the broader gathering.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington would consider inviting Zelensky to Miami if the Ukrainian president’s presence might help generate positive outcomes. Zelensky noted that Ukraine had not yet received a formal invitation from Washington but would welcome one if Trump pairs it with a concrete peace initiative.
Still, Zelensky insisted that foreign powers cannot resolve the conflict over Ukraine’s head, saying it is illogical and unfair to decide his nation’s future without Kyiv at the table.
Abu Dhabi talks ahead
Diplomatic movement is slated to continue before any prospective presidential meeting occurs. Trilateral negotiations involving Ukraine, Russia and the United States are scheduled to convene in Abu Dhabi between Nov. 6 and Nov. 10 to address post-war security arrangements, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
Those discussions follow a short-term, U.S.-brokered humanitarian ceasefire around the Russian-held town of Oleshky in southern Ukraine, which allowed civilians to evacuate without reported violations before expiring on Nov. 1.
