Ukraine and Russia Begin 5th Peace Talks in Istanbul, Turkey (Comprehensive)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is giving a speech ahead of the 5th Ukraine-Russia peace talks held at the Dolmabahce Palace in Istanbul, Turkey, on the 29th (local time). [Image source=TASS Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] Ukraine and Russia have begun the 5th round of peace negotiations in Istanbul, Turkey.

The delegations from both countries arrived at the Dolmabah?e Palace in Istanbul, the negotiation venue, around 9:40 a.m. local time on the 29th and took their seats at the negotiation table. The Dolmabah?e Palace was once the residence of the Ottoman Empire's sultans and is currently used as the Turkish government's state guesthouse.

Before the negotiations, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an gave a speech to both delegations, stating that "a fair peace will not produce losers." He said, "A prolonged conflict will not benefit anyone," and added, "Turkey is ready to host a summit between Russia and Ukraine."

In this round of talks, the head of the Russian delegation was again Vladimir Medinsky, presidential aide, as in previous negotiations. On the other hand, the head of the Ukrainian delegation was not Mykhailo Podolyak, presidential office adviser, but Davyd Arakhamia, the ruling party leader. Adviser Podolyak participated as a member of the negotiation team.

The delegations had previously held three face-to-face negotiations on the 28th of last month and the 3rd and 7th of this month. Since the 14th, the 4th round of talks has continued in the form of video conferences.

Through negotiations, both sides agreed on establishing humanitarian corridors for civilian evacuation and reportedly narrowed differences on Ukraine's attempt to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). However, they have not bridged their views on territorial issues such as the Crimean Peninsula, forcibly annexed by Russia, and the independence recognition of the Donetsk People's Republic and Luhansk People's Republic, established by pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine's Donbas region.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed on the 27th that he is willing to compromise with Russia on issues including the Donbas region, stating that discussions could cover Ukraine's neutral status, non-nuclear status, security guarantees, and the allowance of Russian language use within Ukraine. However, he made it clear that he cannot accept Russia's demand for demilitarization, stating, "If they insist on demilitarization, we will not negotiate."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.