Despite proposing the direct talks in Istanbul, Putin’s name did not appear on a list released by the Kremlin on Wednesday of Russian officials who would be attending the negotiations.

Vladimir Putin will not travel to Turkey and is instead sending the deputy foreign affairs and defence ministers, the head of his military intelligence, and the presidential aide, who will lead the delegation,

Vladimir Putin has declined to meet Volodymyr Zelensky in Istanbul for talks on ending the war in Ukraine. The Russian President is instead sending a low-level delegation headed by Vladimir Medinsky,

President Vladimir Putin has appointed a delegation of senior officials to attend Thursday’s direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul, according to a directive published by the Kremlin late Wednesday. Presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky,

If Vladimir Putin comes to Istanbul for negotiations on the war in Ukraine, nothing will come of it. It will be yet another attempt by the Kremlin to influence the peace talks, Ukrainian political analyst Taras Zahorodniy says in an interview on the YouTube channel of RBC-Ukraine.

The US President was asked about the possibility of the Russian leader attending, as Vladimir Putin's spokesperson offered an ambigious answer to the question.

In a dramatic shift, Trump's envoy, Keith Kellogg, has called for a complete ceasefire to end Europe's longest war since World War II. Despite initial hesitations, Trump is moving closer to Ukraine, distancing himself from Putin's regime.