Monday’s Coverage: Zelensky — I Am Waiting for Putin in Turkey

Map: Institute for the Study of War

UPDATE 1546 GMT:

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky says that he will meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, but emphasized that both leaders are ready to fly to Istanbul if Vladimir Putin chooses to attend direct talks.

“We will be waiting to meet with Putin in Turkey. So that Russia does not manipulate cities and say that Putin is not ready to fly to Ankara, but is ready to fly only to Istanbul,” Zelensky told reporters in Kyiv. I have conveyed the signal to President Erdoğan, and the Turkish side is ready.”

UPDATE 1212 GMT:

Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz has reiterated that the European Union will impose tighter sanctions on Russia if there is no progress towards a halt of Moscow’s invasion by the end of the week.

Speaking at a press conference with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Merz said of the sanctions, “We will be looking at other areas, such as the energy sector and also the financial market.”

He praised Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky for showing his “seriousness and willingness to compromise, that he is prepared to do everything possible to seize the opportunity for a ceasefire and subsequent peace talks on Ukraine”.

However, more concessions by Ukraine were “no longer acceptable” amid a Russian invasion “pushing the boundaries of what the entire country can be expected to endure”.

The Chancellor emphasized, “The headline is: this war must stop. And that’s why we are helping.” Germany would “support the Ukraine military for many years to come”.

None of us is prepared to accept that military force will change the borders in Europe. If we allow this to happen, we will see further military aggression against other European countries.

UPDATE 1041 GMT:

The Kremlin is still stalling over whether Vladimir Putin will go to Istanbul to meet Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia will announce its representative when Putin “deems it necessary”.

He added, “The Russian side continues to prepare for the talks scheduled for Thursday. That is all we can say at this point. We do not intend to comment further at this time.”

Ukraine Presidential Chief of Staff Andrii Yermak commented, “If Vladimir Putin refuses to come to Turkey, it will be the final signal that Russia does not want to end this war, that Russia is not willing and not ready for any negotiations.”

UPDATE 1007 GMT:

Six Bulgarian nationals involved in a Russian spy ring in the UK have been sentenced to prison terms of up to 10 year and 8 months.

Jan Marsalek, the chief operating officer of the insolvent financial service firm Wirecard AG, is accused of coordinating and funding the ring.

Orlin Roussev, who took instructions and payments from Marsalek, was given the longest sentence. Others were given terms from 5 to 10 years.

UPDATE 0959 GMT:

While Vladimir Putin is silent about Volodymyr Zelensky’s challenge to a meeting in Istanbul, Kremlin associates are trying to justify a Putin bailout from the direct talks.

The deputy speaker of the Federal Council, the upper chamber of the Russian legislature, said Zelensky’s invitation is “pure spectacle” and “comedy.”

Konstantin Kosachev claimed high-level meetings are not organized in “such a difficult situation”.

A senior legislator in the Duma, the lower chamber, doubted Putin will travel to Istabul.

Alexei Chepa, the deputy chair of the Committee on International Affairs, delared that Russia cannot trust Ukraine because Kyiv has violated previous agreements and Putin’s self-declared “ceasefires”.

UPDATE 0945 GMT:

At least two civilians were killed and at least seven injured by Russian attacks across Ukraine over the past day.

Air defenses shot down all 10 drones launched by Russia overnight.

In the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine, one person was killed in the village of Zoria and two injured in the villages of Dorozhnie and Svitle.

In the Sumy region in the north, the driver of a car with energy specialists was killed by a drone.

Casualties were also reported in the Kherson, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhzhia regions.

UPDATE 0919 GMT:

The UN Aviation Council has ruled that Russia was responsible for the downing of Malaysian passenger airliner MH17 over eastern Ukraine on July 17, 2014.

As they tried to seize territory in the Donetsk region, Ukrainian separatists — using a Russian-supplied missile — fired on the aircraft. The crash killed all 298 passengers and crew.

In forthcoming weeks, the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization will consider the form of reparations.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Despite calling for direct talks over his 38 1/2-month invasion of Ukraine, Vladimir Putin is not committing to a sitdown with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Istanbul on Thursday.

Trying to avoid the Ukraine-Europe initiative for a 30-day unconditional ceasefire, Putin issued the call in a 2 a.m. address on Sunday.

However, Zelensky — with full support from European partners such as Poland, France, Germany, and the UK — turned the challenge back on the Russian. The President said he will be waiting in Istanbul:

I expect Putin to come to Türkiye as well. Personally. And I hope that this time, Putin won’t be looking for excuses as to why he “can’t” make it.

He and the Europeans kept up the pressure for the ceasefire before the meeting, with “massive sanctions” on Russia if Putin did not comply.

That effort was undermined by Donald Trump who undermined his own officials and said the Turkey encounter is the priority. On Monday, the reality TV star said he might gate-crash the event: “There’s a possibility there I guess if I think things can happen.”

Maintaining the diplomatic initiative, Zelensky set aside the condition of the ceasefire and welcomed Trump’s presence: “All of us in Ukraine would appreciate it if President Trump could be there with us at this meeting in Türkiye. This is the right idea. We can change a lot.”

Meanwhile, Putin was silent and the Kremlin scrambled for a response. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov fumed over the ceasefire, “The language of ultimatums is unacceptable to Russia, it is not appropriate. You cannot talk to Russia in such a language.”

In his nightly address to the nation, Zelensky noted Putin’s disappearance:

Senior Presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak emphasized Zelensky will only meet Putin and not other members of the Russian delegation.