Ukraine, Russia meet for peace talks in Istanbul after explosive weekend

Russian and Ukrainian delegations have begun talks in Istanbul, Turkey, on Monday, less than 24 hours after a massive Ukrainian drone attack struck Russian airfields.

The two delegations entered Ciragan Palace in Istanbul alongside a group of senior Turkish officials. It is the second round of peace talks to take place in the three years since Russia invaded Ukraine.

Images from the event show many of the Ukrainian delegation wearing military uniforms, while the Russian group exclusively wore suits. 

Details of the meeting are not expected to be made public until after its conclusion. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin will not be meeting face-to-face, however. 

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Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (Vyacheslav Prokofyev/Sputnik/Kremlin Pool Photo/Efrem Lukatsky/AP)

Ukrainian forces destroyed 40 aircraft in the drone attack this weekend, which an official says took more than a year to orchestrate. Russia's defense ministry confirmed the attack on Sunday, saying it struck five airfields.

The operation saw drones transported in containers carried by trucks deep into Russian territory, he said. The drones reportedly hit 41 planes stationed at several airfields on Sunday afternoon, including A-50, Tu-95 and Tu-22M aircraft, the official said.

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Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan chairs Turkiye-Russia-Ukraine Trilateral Meeting in Istanbul, Turkey, on June 2, 2025.  (Murat Gok/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Moscow has previously used Tupolev Tu-95 and Tu-22 long-range bombers to launch missiles at Ukraine, while A-50s are used to coordinate targets and detect air defenses and guided missiles.

A series of explosions also struck bridges in Russia near Ukraine's border on Saturday, though Ukraine has not taken responsibility for the attacks.

Ukrainian soldiers from the 115th Brigade Mortar Unit conduct mortar training, as members of the Anti-UAV unit test an FPV drone inhibitor in Lyman, Ukraine. (Photo by Jose Colon/Anadolu via Getty Images)

A highway bridge over a railway in the Bryansk region was blown up at 10:50 p.m. on Saturday night just as a passenger train carrying 388 passengers to Moscow was passing underneath, Russian investigators said.

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Just four hours later, a railway bridge over a highway was blown up in the neighboring Kursk region, showering the road with parts of a freight train, the investigators said.