Putin Set to Skip Russia-Ukraine Peace Talks in Turkey: Kremlin

Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend the Russia-Ukraine peace talks in Turkey this week, according to a Russian delegation list published late Wednesday by the Kremlin, despite Ukraine’s demands and Western pressure. The Kremlin’s Telegram channel announced on May 14 that presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, who led unsuccessful talks with Ukraine in 2022, will head Russia’s delegation to peace talks in Istanbul. The delegation includes Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin, Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin, and Russian military intelligence (GRU) chief Igor Kostyukov, supported by expert advisers from the Foreign and Defense Ministries and the presidential administration. Moscow delayed confirming its delegates for the Istanbul peace talks, which Putin unexpectedly announced early Sunday amid Western-supported demands for a 30-day cease-fire in Ukraine....