"I am ready to meet with Putin in Turkey" — Zelenskyy
In a meeting with Erdoğan, the President of Ukraine discussed holding a trilateral summit involving the Russian leader, Black Sea security, and other issues.
“I am ready to meet Putin in Turkey” — Zelenskyy
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that he is ready to meet with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Turkey. He announced this in an interview with the CNN Turk television channel.
Zelenskyy traveled to Istanbul on October 31 at the invitation of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. This was the third face-to-face meeting between the two leaders in the last four months. The talks also discussed the issue of holding a trilateral meeting in Turkey. Zelenskyy expressed his support for such an initiative, stating that he would only be pleased if Ankara could pull it off.
“The war with Russia must end. I hope Turkey will mediate. I am ready to meet with Putin in Turkey,” he said.
### Energy Truce and Black Sea Security
During the meeting with his Turkish counterpart, Zelenskyy raised the issue of an energy truce as winter approaches and Russian ballistic missile attacks continue. The parties also discussed issues of food security, ensuring the safe navigation of ships in the Black Sea, and trade liberalization.
The Ukrainian president particularly emphasized Erdoğan’s role in establishing the Black Sea grain corridor in 2022. At a time when Russia blockaded Ukrainian ports, this agreement allowed grain to be delivered to Africa and other nations in need of food.
### Its fate cannot be decided without Ukraine
In the interview, Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine’s participation is essential in any peace negotiations.
“Its fate cannot be decided without Ukraine. Our sovereignty and territorial integrity cannot be discussed without Ukraine either. Many leaders have previously tried to decide Ukraine’s fate without us, but none of it produced results. To reach an agreement, the warring parties themselves must be at the negotiating table,” he said.
Additionally, Zelenskyy emphasized that although Russia planned to capture Ukraine in three days, it has failed to achieve this goal for nearly five years.