Ukraine war latest: Zelensky sends delegation to Istanbul, as peace talks with Russia are expected on May 16

Key developments on May 15:

• Zelensky sends Ukrainian delegation to Istanbul, as peace talks with Russia are expected on May 16
• Trump expects no progress in Russia-Ukraine peace talks until he meets Putin
• Pro-Ukraine partisans sabotage railway track near Russia's Smolensk
• Ukraine shows its latest 'ship-killer' Magura drone series to the public for the first time
• US proposes reviving NATO-Russia Council, Bloomberg reports

President Volodymyr Zelensky announced during a press conference on May 15 that he will not personally participate in the upcoming negotiations with Russia in Istanbul, instead sending a Ukrainian delegation led by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov.

Speaking in Ankara, Zelensky clarified that Ukraine's delegation would not include the head of the General Staff, and the head of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), as it was previously suggested.

Among other members of Ukraine's delegation are First Deputy Foreign Minister Serhiy Kyslytsya, Deputy SBU Chief Oleksandr Poklad, Military Intelligence Deputy Head Vadym Skibitskyi, as well as other national security and intelligence officials. The delegation will engage with representatives from Turkey, the United States, and Russia.

Agreeing on a ceasefire, according to Zelensky, remains a key priority.

"Out of respect for President Trump, the high level of the Turkish delegation, and President Erdogan, and since we want to try to achieve at least the first steps toward de-escalation, an end to the war – namely a ceasefire – I have decided to send our delegation to Istanbul," Zelensky said.

After Moscow proposed to hold peace talks in Turkey this week, Zelensky agreed and invited Russian President Vladimir Putin for a face-to-face meeting. The Russian leader declined to attend and appointed his aide, Vladimir Medinsky, to lead the talks.

"We see that they, unfortunately, are very unserious about real negotiations. So far, we do not see any real decision-makers among those present," Zelensky said at the press conference.

Zelensky said that, under the current circumstances, he sees no reason for his or certain other top officials’ presence in Istanbul, given that Putin declined to attend.

Trump expects no progress in Russia-Ukraine peace talks until he meets Putin

U.S. President Donald Trump said on May 15 that peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine will not move forward until he meets Russian President Vladimir Putin, Reuters reported.

"Nothing's going to happen until Putin and I get together," the U.S. president told journalists aboard Air Force One before landing in Dubai as part of his Middle Eastern tour.

Trump has previously suggested he might join the talks on May 16 if progress is made, but downplayed Putin's absence on the first day of the negotiations, saying, "Why would he go if I'm not going?"

Later on May 15, U.S. State Secretary Marco Rubio said peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in Turkey are unlikely to yield meaningful progress, calling the low-level Russian delegation "not indicative of one that’s going to lead to a major breakthrough."

"I hope I'm wrong. I hope I'm 100% wrong. I hope tomorrow the news says they've agreed to a ceasefire, they've agreed to enter serious negotiations," Rubio told reporters during a briefing in Ankara. "But I'm just giving you my assessment."

Rubio said that meaningful progress would likely only come through a meeting between Trump and Putin.

"The next thing that has to happen for there to be a breakthrough is going to involve President Trump's direct involvement," Rubio said. "And I believe the president shares my assessment."

Rubio also said he would meet with Ukraine’s senior delegation and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, while other lower-level members of the U.S. team will attend the talks involving Russian representatives.

He added that Trump is "impatient to end this war," saying, “Our goal here is to achieve peace — whether that begins with a 30-day ceasefire, a one-day ceasefire, or a final deal that's all negotiated in a single day. To us, the process is less important than the outcome.”

Pro-Ukraine partisans sabotage railway track near Russia's Smolensk

Members of Ukraine's Atesh partisan group have set fire to a relay cabinet at a Russian railway track used by the Russian military, the group said on May 15.

The operation was allegedly carried out in Russia's Smolensk Oblast, a western region bordering Belarus, to disrupt arms and equipment shipments to Russian forces stationed at Ukraine's northeastern border.

The Ukrainian leadership has warned that Moscow is amassing forces near Ukraine's Sumy and Kharkiv oblasts in the northeast for a potential new offensive.

"Thanks for the courageous steps by our partisans, Russia faced serious disruption in timely deliveries of front-line supplies," Atesh said on Telegram.

A video shared by the partisans shows an unknown person behind the camera setting fire to the relay cabinet at night. According to the partisans, the targeted equipment was located close to the city of Smolensk, some 270 kilometers (170 miles) north of the Russia-Ukraine border.

The Kyiv Independent could not verify the claims.

Ukraine shows its latest 'ship-killer' Magura drone series to the public for the first time

Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) on May 14 for the first time presented its latest versatile Magura naval drones to the public.

The Magura drones, as well as the Sea Baby drones of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), have been pivotal in turning the tide of the war in the Black Sea, destroying or damaging multiple Russian ships and other assets.

HUR's Group 13 has deployed Magura drones to successfully hit 17 naval and aerial Russian targets. Fifteen of them, including two Mi-8 helicopters, two Su-30 fighter jets, and theSergey Kotov, Ivanovets, and Ceasar Kunikov warships of Russia's Black Sea Fleet, have been destroyed, the agency said.

Several variants of the Magura drones exist, including the "ship-killer" V5, the V7 capable of carrying machine guns or anti-air missiles, and the multi-platform V6P.

As of 2024, Ukraine was reportedly able to destroy or disable one-third of the Russian Black Sea Fleet in a drone and missile campaign, despite Moscow's significant advantage in sheer naval power.

Black Sea hostilities have since then quieted down as Russia moved most of its naval assets from occupied Crimea further east and Ukraine managed to resume its maritime shipping.

US proposes reviving NATO-Russia Council, Bloomberg reports

The United States is proposing to revive the NATO-Russia Council as part of a broader American plan to end the war in Ukraine, Bloomberg reported on May 15, citing unnamed sources.

In April, Axios reported that U.S. President Donald Trump's peace plan also included Washington's de jure recognition of Russia's control over occupied Crimea, along with de facto recognition of its occupation of other Ukrainian territories, offering sanctions relief, and freezing the war along current front lines.

The proposal to revive the NATO-Russia Council, a forum for military and political dialogue frozen since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, is a new part added to the American proposal, according to Bloomberg.

The NATO-Russia Council (NRC) was created in 2002 to promote cooperation and dialogue between NATO and Russia. Originally designed as a forum where NATO members and Russia could work as equal partners on shared security issues, the NRC has not convened since January 2022.

While formal cooperation was suspended after Russia’s 2014 illegal annexation of Crimea, the council remained a key channel for communication, primarily on Ukraine, until ties were effectively severed following the 2022 invasion.

Note from the author:

Ukraine War Latest is put together by the Kyiv Independent news desk team, who keep you informed 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you value our work and want to ensure we have the resources to continue, join the Kyiv Independent community.