Zelensky asked Erdogan to help organize his meeting with Putin

Zelensky counts on Ankara's mediation

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky in an interview with CNN Türk expressed hope that Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan will help organize his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. “I know that President Erdogan maintains contact with Putin. That is why we support a meeting in Turkey,” Zelensky said. In his view, Ankara could act as a practical and realistic mediator in negotiations on settling the Ukrainian conflict.

Uncertainty surrounding the trilateral format

The Ukrainian leader's statement came amid conflicting signals about a possible summit involving Russia, Ukraine and the United States. As Gazeta.Rureports, Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov said this week that a meeting of the presidents of the three countries is possible, but that it requires “long and painstaking work.” At the same time, according to the outlet, the American politician suggested that such a summit could take place in the near future, speaking of “tremendous progress.” Peskov, according to Gazeta.Ru, noted that Moscow knows nothing about the trilateral contact with Putin and Zelensky announced by Trump.

Context

Thus, at this point only Zelensky's position, voiced by himself in the interview, has been confirmed: he supports holding the meeting in Turkey and sees Erdogan as a mediator. The timing and format of possible negotiations, including a trilateral summit with US participation, remain the subject of conflicting statements — from expectations of an imminent meeting to the Kremlin's indication that it has no information about such contact.