Putin bluffs, Zelenski bids. Negotiations in Istanbul

It started with quite a few words. At a peculiar press conference convened urgently on the night of 10th to 11th May, the Russian president abruptly declared his desire to return to peace talks with Ukraine. – We never gave up dialog with the Ukrainian side – he argued. The fresh circular was scheduled to take place on 15 May in Istanbul, as already agreed by Turkey's president Recep Erdoğan, and Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Pieskov assured: – Russia will be represented at the appropriate level.