President Putin has invited Ukrainian President Zelensky and US President Trump to a high-level summit in Istanbul, Turkey, on June 2. The invitation was made through the Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, who emphasized that a high-level summit would require concrete outcomes from the negotiations between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has also expressed willingness to host the meeting, with the participation of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as well. Zelensky had previously invited Putin to Istanbul for direct talks on May 16, proposing a three-way format with Trump to push forward peace efforts. However, Putin declined to attend and sent a low-level delegation instead.
The Istanbul talks ended without agreement on a ceasefire or broader political settlement, but did result in the largest prisoner exchange of the full-scale war. The Kremlin has repeatedly attacked Zelensky’s legitimacy as president, pointing out that his first presidential term was originally meant to end on May 20, 2024.
Ukraine’s constitution prohibits elections during martial law, which has been in effect since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in 2022. As a result, Zelensky’s term has been extended, which constitutional lawyers argue is permitted under Ukrainian law.
Trump has backed the idea of a high-level summit and held a two-hour phone call with Putin on May 19, pushing to broker a ceasefire deal. Putin and Zelensky have met only once – in December 2019, during the Normandy Format talks in Paris.
