A New Offensive on Ukraine, the Purpose of the Talks in Istanbul, and the Crimean Issue: What Zelensky said in Turkey

15 May 2025 19:20

VIDEO

On May 15, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Ankara, Turkey, and met with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. However, the main purpose of the visit was the announced talks with Russia on the first steps towards ending the war in Ukraine. However, after it became known that the Russian leader would not arrive in Turkey, Zelenskyy refused to engage in a dialogue with the Russian negotiating team.

After that, Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived at the Embassy of Ukraine in Ankara, where he gave a press conference for the media. [ Kommersant has collected the main statements of the Ukrainian president.

What Volodymyr Zelenskyy said about his meeting with the Turkish president

First of all, the Ukrainian leader thanked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for organizing the opportunity for direct talks. He called the meeting with his counterpart “good and productive” and clarified that it was about bringing peace and ensuring security.

I thank President Erdogan and the whole of Turkey for supporting our country, for supporting all real steps towards a complete and unconditional ceasefire and true diplomacy. We will continue close coordination to make the negotiations truly effective,” Zelenskyy said.

The leaders of Ukraine and Turkey also discussed cooperation within the Coalition of the Willing, security guarantees, ceasefire monitoring, maritime demining, the reconstruction of Ukraine and the development of partnership between our countries.

“It looks like a sham”: Zelensky on the level of the Russian delegation

The Ukrainian president emphasized that the Ukrainian delegation is represented in Turkey at the highest level. This includes the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Office of the President, the military, and intelligence officials.

Zelenskyy emphasized that the delegation has all the necessary rights to make any decisions that could lead to the expected just peace.

As for the representatives of the Russian side, the Ukrainian leader said the following:

“I don’t know the level of ‘Russians’ officially yet, but from what we see, it looks more like a sham. We will think about what we will do, what our steps will be,” he said.

Nevertheless, Zelenskyy decided to send a delegation to Istanbul “out of respect for Trump and Erdogan and in an attempt to take at least the first steps to end the war.” It was headed by Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov. The mandate is the No. 1 issue regarding the ceasefire.

The Ukrainian delegation will meet with the Russian delegation today or tomorrow (May 16 – ed.), with the participation of American and Turkish groups.

In addition, the President of Ukraine said that in the event of a personal meeting with the Russian leader, he is confident that it is possible to reach an agreement on at least a temporary ceasefire.

putin must demonstrate leadership. If he is ready for negotiations, we should meet without any conditions,” Zelenskyy said.

In his opinion, such a meeting would definitely bring results, and perhaps even more.

The first step to negotiations should be a ceasefire. If this is possible at the level of technical groups, it is good, but if a direct dialogue between the leaders is needed, he is ready,” Zelensky said.

He also warned of the following: if there is no ceasefire and no serious decisions, Ukraine will ask the United States, the EU and the countries of the global South to impose appropriate sanctions on Russia, which will be an incentive to end the war sooner.

What the President of Ukraine said about Crimea, war and peace in Ankara

Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized in his dialog with media representatives that he had received a clear message from the Turkish leader that he considers Crimea, annexed by Russia in 2014, to be Ukrainian territory.

The Ukrainian leader also once again rejected the idea of giving up Crimea for the sake of peace with Russia. According to him, discussing territories is a violation of the Constitution, so Ukraine does not legally recognize the occupied lands as Russian. At the same time, Kyiv is ready to discuss the humanitarian situation in these territories.

russia has launched a new offensive against Ukraine: Zelenskyy makes an official statement

Another important statement made by the Ukrainian president in Ankara concerned Russia’s new offensive against Ukraine. According to him, the Russian Armed Forces have been conducting offensive operations on all fronts for several months. Sumy region is under the main attack. There are 67 thousand Russian troops concentrated there.

We took appropriate steps to prevent them from uniting. Therefore, the Russians are now working to restore and regroup their forces,” the President of Ukraine said.

Negotiations in Istanbul: what the Russian side said

on May 15, the head of the Russian delegation that arrived in Turkey also spoke to journalists. He is the former Minister of Culture Vladimir Medinsky. His statements have already been broadcast by leading Russian media.

What Medinsky said to journalists:

putin has set tasks and determined the negotiating position in İstanbul following a meeting with all the commanders of the russian armed forces;

russia views the current negotiations in Istanbul as a continuation of the previously interrupted peace process;

the goal of direct contacts with Ukraine is to establish a long-term peace with the elimination of the causes of the conflict. That is, in fact, Russia continues to insist that: Crimea, Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions should go to it; Ukraine should refuse to join NATO and the EU; and the Armed Forces should cease to exist;

the Russian delegation in Istanbul has all the powers and competencies.

It is worth noting that at the end of the interview, a representative of a French media outlet said the following to Medinsky: “Your president is afraid to come.” The Russian representative did not comment on this remark and quickly left.