Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has announced that he won’t be attending the peace talk scheduled to hold in Turkey later today.
Zelensky made this known after Moscow disclosed that Putin will only send “stand-in props” to represent him.
The Ukrainian President who had earlier arrived Ankara, Turkeys capital and commercial hub ahead of the meeting had challenged Putin to come in person insisting that he would only attend the meeting if Putin were in attendance.
Reacting to Zelensky’s “stand-in props” comment, Russia’s foreign ministry calls Ukraine’s president a clown and a loser.
The meeting between Russian, Ukrainian and US delegations was expected to begin this afternoon, according to Russia’s foreign ministry.
The Russian delegates sent were seemed to be very junior, Vitaliy Shevchenko had reported from Istanbul.
Key names include the Russian presidential adviser, Vladimir Medinsky, the deputy foreign minister, Mikhail Galuzin and the deputy defence minister Alexander Fomin – a level of representation which the Ukrainians will see as an insult.
Meanwhile, US President, Donald Trump says he may travel to Istanbul on Friday if talks make progress as he is on a four days visit to the middle-east.