Direct talks in Istanbul - Russia end with unachievable demands

Direct talks between the Ukrainian and Russian delegations in Istanbul have ended, a source from the Turkish Foreign Ministry confirmed.

This was the first face-to-face meeting between the parties in three years, and it lasted a little over an hour, writes sky news.

Russia has presented unrealized demands that go beyond any previous topic of negotiations, a source from Ukrainian diplomacy said after today's talks in Istanbul.

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According to this source, one of the Russian demands is the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from their territory as a condition for a ceasefire.

He added that there were other demands that, as he said, were "unacceptable from the beginning," reports reuters.

Meanwhile, the Russians say that "the negotiations are not over. The parties have taken a break."

Otherwise, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had agreed to meet 'face to face' with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, but the latter had refused and sent a delegation to the Turkish state. /Telegraph/