Zelensky Proposes Gulf States, Turkey, and Europe to Host Peace Talks with Russia

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky proposed that Gulf States, Turkey, and several European countries host future peace talks with Russia, at a time when Moscow continues to insist that Kyiv abandon its NATO membership aspirations and cede territory as a condition for peace.

Zelensky made the statement during his televised evening address on Tuesday, where he announced that "talks with representatives of these countries will be held this week." He added, "On our part, everything will be prepared in the best way to end this war," while emphasizing the importance of "continuing international pressure on Moscow."

The Ukrainian president pointed out that "the only signals Russia is sending indicate that it intends to continue evading real negotiations."

This proposal comes against the backdrop of limited previous talks between the two sides, with the last direct negotiations held in 2022 in Istanbul, where limited agreements were reached on humanitarian aspects, such as prisoner and body exchanges, without any significant progress towards a comprehensive settlement of the crisis.

Last August also saw the failure of U.S. President Donald Trump's efforts to achieve a breakthrough, despite holding two consecutive summits; the first with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska, and the second with Zelensky and European allies in Washington.

Russia still insists on its conditions for peace, which include Ukraine abandoning its ambition to join NATO and ceding some of its territory, demands that Kyiv rejects as "unconstitutional."

For its part, the Kremlin continues to refuse to hold any direct meeting between Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, asserting that such talks should first be prepared at a lower level with concrete agreements reached. Moscow has also ruled out holding any negotiations in Europe, considering that EU countries "are not neutral parties in the conflict."