Erdogan called for direct dialogue with Putin in Istanbul after conversation with Zelensky

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, after a telephone conversation with President Volodymyr Zelensky , said that the next step on the path to peace should be a meeting at the level of heads of state. This was reported by the press service of the Presidential Administration of the Republic of Turkey.

Erdogan stated that holding meetings at the level of heads of state after the meetings between delegations would be beneficial for the peace process and that, in his opinion, this should be done without unnecessary delay.

He also noted that Turkey will continue to work to ensure a just and lasting peace between Ukraine and Russia.

Ankara also advocates the continuation of the negotiations that began in Istanbul between the delegations of the two countries, and it is also satisfied that the prisoner exchange agreed upon at the talks in Istanbul was carried out in a short time.

"Our President stated that discussing a possible ceasefire at the second round of talks scheduled to be held in Istanbul will pave the way for peace, and that the participation of both countries in the meeting with strong delegations is important to continue the momentum provided on the path to peace," the press service said in a statement.

On May 30, President Zelenskyy had a telephone conversation with Erdogan , during which they discussed the talks between Ukraine and Russia in Istanbul. They discussed both the results of the previous meeting and plans for the next ones.

• The Turkish Foreign Minister hopes for a meeting between Erdogan, Trump, Putin, and Zelensky following the talks in Istanbul .
• Sibiga also noted that Ukraine wants to receive a "memorandum" from Russia in advance so that the next meeting in Istanbul is meaningful .
• The Kremlin promised to present a "memorandum" with its vision of steps towards a ceasefire immediately after the major prisoner exchange that ended on May 25 , but has not done so to this day . Meanwhile, Kyiv has already handed over its document to Moscow .
• On May 29, it became known that the next meeting of the Russian and Ukrainian delegations could take place on June 2 in Istanbul. The composition of the Russian delegation will not change.