Overview
- Ukraine’s delegation formally proposed a Zelensky–Putin summit by the end of August during Istanbul talks this week.
- Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said any leaders’ meeting must be the final step after detailed expert-level agreements, making an August summit unlikely.
- President Zelensky affirmed that negotiators have begun discussing a leaders’ summit as a step toward ending the war.
- Talks on July 23 in Istanbul lasted just 40 minutes and yielded only prisoner exchanges and the creation of online working groups on political, military and humanitarian issues.
- Both sides remain entrenched on ceasefire terms and territorial sovereignty as President Trump’s 50-day ceasefire deadline nears and fighting continues.