United States President Donald Trump has announced plans to speak with the Kremlin to uncover the details of a recent round of peace talks held in Istanbul. The talks, aimed at establishing a ceasefire in Ukraine, were rejected by the Russian side despite agreement from Kyiv.
The announcement was made by French President Emmanuel Macron during a press briefing in Tirana, Albania, at the European Political Community summit. Macron stated that Trump “intends to hold talks with the Russian side in the coming hours or days” in order to “find out what happened and try to move on.” This refers to the Istanbul meeting on 16 May, which aimed to broker a temporary truce in the ongoing Russian war against Ukraine.
Macron reiterated France’s call for an immediate and unconditional thirty day ceasefire, a proposal welcomed by Ukraine but refused by the Russian dictator. The failure of the talks has once again highlighted the Kremlin’s unwillingness to engage in genuine diplomacy.
Macron expressed his frustration with the Kremlin’s refusal to attend a proposed high-level meeting, noting that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had accepted the offer. The absence of the Russian dictator at the table underlined Moscow’s disregard for international appeals to halt its brutal campaign against Ukraine.
On the same day, a separate round of discussions took place involving President Zelenskyy, Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, and Trump. They discussed the next steps, including increased pressure on Moscow should it continue its violent aggression.
Zelenskyy underlined the importance of continued and strengthened sanctions if Russia refuses a full and unconditional ceasefire and continues its assaults on Ukrainian cities and civilians.
