Russia and Ukraine end round of talks in Istanbul

The round of negotiations between Russia and Ukraine on Tuesday (29) in Istanbul, the capital of Turkey, came to an end without signed agreements, but with new information about the demands of the Ukrainians to establish agreements with the Russians.

Ukraine demands security guarantees and a ceasefire to resolve humanitarian problems. Among the points presented is the proposal to guarantee consultations on the territory of Crimea — annexed by Russia in 2014 — for the next 15 years.

Ukraine’s neutral status would be conditional on the non-implementation of international military bases on the country’s territory. According to one of the Ukrainian negotiators, the security guarantees could involve Israel, Poland, Canada and Turkey — but no further details were provided on the countries’ role in this possible deal.

In addition, one of the Ukrainian negotiators said that any agreement would have to go through a referendum, a condition advanced by President Volodymyr Zelensky, and that the ceasefire was essential for any proposal to be closed.

One adviser said that the initial objective was to discuss fundamental bases of the negotiation process, and that the delegations work in parallel to debate the whole spectrum of issues between the two countries.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan welcomed delegations from both sides in an Istanbul palace, saying it was up to them to “stop this tragedy”. Ukrainian television reported that negotiations began with “a cold reception” and no handshake.

With more than a month into the war, the biggest attack on a European country since World War II, more than 3.8 million people have fled abroad, thousands have been killed and wounded, and Russia’s economy has been hit by sanctions.