Türkiye willing to host Russian, Ukrainian leaders for talks when they’re ready: Erdoğan

Following his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Türkiye would be willing to host Russian and Ukrainian leaders for talks when they are ready, according to a statement from the Turkish Communications Directorate.

Erdoğan stressed that the current stage of the war calls for a resolution through direct negotiations and highlighted the urgent need to reach a common ground to prevent further loss of life.

He described the moment as a historic opportunity to launch peace talks and reaffirmed Türkiye's strong support for dialogue at both the technical and leadership levels.

Earlier, Zelensky arrived in Türkiye's capital Ankara for a meeting with Erdoğan ahead of expected Russia-Ukraine peace talks.

"Out of respect for President Trump and Erdoğan, I have decided to send our delegation to Istanbul now … The delegation will be headed by the minister of defense," Zelensky told journalists in Ankara after the meeting.

The bilateral meeting and the inter-delegation working lunch, held behind closed doors at the Presidential Complex, lasted 2 hours and 45 minutes.

The closed-door meeting was also attended by Turkish National Defense Minister Yaşar Güler, National Intelligence Organization head Ibrahim Kalın, and Akif Çağatay Kılıç, chief presidential advisor on foreign policy and security.