The first high-level Turkish-mediated talks to end the Russia-Ukraine war failed. Russia and Ukraine reject 24-hour ceasefire Russian Prime Minister Sergei Viktorovich Lavrov and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba also attended the talks.
The two countries were not ready to accept any of the conditions in the talks. Russia has denied Ukraine’s request for a 24 – hour ceasefire to allow people to evacuate the area. Ukraine’s position that a ceasefire was not practical in the current situation also led to the failure of the talks.
Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told the US leadership that some of the references in the talks were positive. It is reported that the Turkish President has spoken to the US President Joe Biden on this issue. Turkey demanded that the issue be resolved amicably through diplomatic relations. Turkey has called for an immediate end to the war. But Western nations have also expressed frustration that the talks have gone nowhere.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba has said he does not intend to surrender to Russia. He said Ukraine and Russia had not made any progress in ratifying the ceasefire agreement. “We are ready for diplomacy, we seek diplomatic decisions and we want peace, but we are ready to resist Russian aggression,” he said.