Foreign Minister of Ukraine Andriy Sibiga summed up the meeting of Ukrainian and Russian delegations, which took place on May 16 in Istanbul. In his Facebook post on his Facebook page, he stressed that the meeting itself cannot be the basis for weakening international pressure on Russia, which continues aggression against Ukraine.
According to Sibiga, despite provocative statements from Russian representatives, it was possible to achieve an important humanitarian result - an agreement on the exchange of thousands of Ukrainian prisoners of war. The minister called this step critically important in the current environment.
At the same time, he noted that the delegation of the Russian Federation did not have the proper authority to discuss the ceasefire, which, according to the Ukrainian side, testifies to the Kremlin's reluctance to move towards real peace.
Sibiga criticized Vladimir Putin's attempt to present an Istanbul meeting as a logical continuation of the 2022 negotiations, emphasizing that the current situation is fundamentally different, and the diplomatic process has come to a new stage.
The Ukrainian Minister also emphasized the need for active participation of the United States in peaceful settlement and noted that the role of President Donald Trump could be decisive in the development of future diplomatic initiatives. According to him, Ukraine clearly holds its position - the return of citizens, ensuring peace and strengthening defense.
Sibaiga called Vladimir Putin not to avoid a personal meeting with Vladimir Zelensky. He stressed that only at the level of heads of states it is possible to make strategic decisions necessary to end the war.
