Overview
- Zelenskyy is set to meet President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Ankara on Wednesday to present proposals to restart talks and to pursue a renewed prisoner exchange.
- Turkish government sources say U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to join the meetings, while the Kremlin says no Russian officials will participate.
- Earlier Istanbul rounds since May produced prisoner swaps and returns of bodies but no movement toward a ceasefire.
- In Paris, Zelenskyy and Emmanuel Macron signed a statement of intent for Ukraine to acquire up to 100 Rafale jets and other French systems, with financing and delivery timelines uncertain as the EU debates using frozen Russian assets.
- Ukraine’s push comes as fighting intensifies around Pokrovsk and a widening corruption scandal triggers parliamentary turmoil and calls for resignations in Kyiv.