Kremlin confirms delegation will attend Istanbul peace talks — Lavrov, Ushakov will likely represent Russia

On May 13, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that a Russian delegation will be in Istanbul later this week for direct peace talks with Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin invited Ukraine to engage in direct talks in Istanbul after rejecting calls a 30-day unconditional ceasefire backed by Europe, Ukraine, and the United States.

President Volodymyr Zelensky responded by accepting the invitation, saying he was ready to meet Putin in Turkey on May 15.

While Putin's attendance has not been confirmed, Peskov promised that the Kremlin will send a delegation to the peace talks.

"Our delegation will be there and will wait for the Ukrainian side," Peskov said, speaking to a Russian state media correspondent.

The Kremlin has yet to announce who will join the Russian delegation, and will only announce it once Putin "deems it necessary."

However, according to a former Russian official who spoke to the Washington Post, Moscow will be represented by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin’s foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov.

The U.S. will also be represented at the peace talks in Istanbul.

U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed on May 13 that Secretary of State Marco Rubio will attend. Trump's envoys, Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg, will also travel to Istanbul to observe the negotiations.

Trump, who is currently on a tour of the Middle East, suggested he might join the peace talks; however, his attendance would "largely depend" on Putin's presence.

If the Putin-Zelensky meeting does occur, it would be the first face-to-face meeting between the two leaders since 2019. Since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, there have been no direct meetings between the two.