More than three years into Europe's deadliest war since 1945, there was a small step forward for diplomacy on Friday.
Delegations from Ukraine and Russia came face-to-face for talks for the first time since March 2022 – one month after Moscow's full-scale invasion of its neighbour. The setting was an Ottoman- era palace on the shores of the Bosphorus in Istanbul.
Pressure and encouragement from Turkey and the US helped get the warring parties there.
There were no handshakes, and half the Ukrainian delegation wore camouflage military fatigues – a reminder that their nation is under attack.
The room was decked with Ukrainian, Turkish and Russian flags – two of each – and a large flower arrangement – a world away from the shattered cities and swollen graveyards of Ukraine.
Turkey's Foreign Minister, Hakan Fidan, told the delegations there were two paths ahead – one road leading to peace, and the other leading to more death and destruction.
The talks lasted less than two hours and sharp divisions soon emerged. The Kremlin made "new and unacceptable demands", according to a Ukrainian official. That included insisting Kyiv withdraw its troops from large parts of its own territory, he said, in exchange for a ceasefire.
While there was no breakthrough on the crucial issue of a truce – as expected - there is news of one tangible result.
Each side will return 1,000 prisoners of war to the other.
No comments:
Post a Comment