The third round of talks between Ukrainian and Russian delegations concluded in Istanbul without any breakthroughs.

After the meeting, Rustem Umerov, the head of the Ukrainian delegation, said that Ukraine had proposed a leaders’ meeting with the involvement of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and US President Donald Trump that will take place by the end of August.

“Only a meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy can unblock a peaceful settlement. All technical mechanisms for a ceasefire are well known. The only obstacle is Moscow’s unconstructive position”, Umerov stated.

The head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky, reported that all agreements on humanitarian issues reached during the second round of negotiations in Istanbul have been implemented. Currently, the exchange of prisoners in the “250 for 250” format is underway at the Ukrainian Belarusian border.

According to the Russian official, Moscow has proposed to Ukraine that at least 1,200 more prisoners be exchanged from each side and to consider short ceasefires lasting 24-48 hours. He also emphasized that the positions of the memorandums of Ukraine and Russia are still far apart, but contact at both the delegation and working group levels will continue.