Trump expresses hope for 'good results' from Ukraine-Russia talks in Istanbul

US President Donald Trump has voiced optimism that talks between Ukraine and Russia, set for Istanbul later this week, could yield “pretty good results.”

“I've also been working relentlessly to end the terrible bloodshed between Russia and Ukraine, and very importantly, talks are being held in Türkiye later this week, probably on Thursday, and they could produce some pretty good results,” Trump said on Tuesday.

“Don't underestimate Thursday's meeting in Türkiye — President Erdogan will be a great host”, Trump added ahead of the peace talks.

“Our people are going to be going there -- (Secretary of State) Marco (Rubio) is going to be going there. Others are going to be going, and we'll see if we can get it done.”

Trump said on Monday that he may travel to Istanbul if he thought it would be helpful.

Trump's special envoys Keith Kellogg and Steve Witkoff are reportedly expected to take part in the talks, regardless if Trump attends. Rubio will be in Antalya, Türkiye, from May 14 -16 for an informal NATO foreign ministers meeting.

Reviving path of diplomacy

The Kremlin on Tuesday said that a Russian delegation will be in the Turkish metropolis Istanbul on Thursday where they expect to meet a Ukrainian delegation to take part in direct peace talks.

“We only evaluate the statements of (Russian President Vladimir) Putin, who proposed holding negotiations between delegations on Thursday in Istanbul. Our delegation will be there and will wait for the Ukrainian side,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalist Pavel Zarubin in an interview, an excerpt of which was shared on Telegram.

Peskov added that who precisely will be representing Moscow at the talks will be disclosed when Putin instructs that this information be made public.

The diplomatic push is the latest to end the war that began in early 2022. The direct talks with Ukraine were proposed by Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday and have received support from Türkiye and the US, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirming his attendance.