Russia expects direct talks with Ukraine to begin Friday morning | 14 May 2025 | The first direct talks between Russia and Ukraine in more than three years are expected to take place in Türkiye's largest city, Istanbul, on Friday. The delegation from Moscow will wait at the Dolmabahce Palace starting at 10 a.m. as proposed by Russia's chief negotiator, Vladimir Medinsky. According to Anadolu news agency sources, the Russian and Ukrainian teams are also set to meet with U.S. and Turkish representatives the same day. As the talks were planned to take place on Thursday, the Kremlin delegation had been waiting for its counterpart to arrive for the whole day. Vladimir Zelensky named his delegation later in the evening. It will consist of 12 delegates and be led by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov.