Before the talks even began, President Donald Trump predicted there would be no progress unless he and Russian President Vladimir Putin were involved.

Russia and Ukraine agreed to exchange 1,000 prisoners of war each during peace talks held in Istanbul on Friday, in what would be the biggest prisoner swap of the conflict. The negotiations, which lasted less than two hours and were mediated by Turkey, marked the first time the nations have engaged in direct peace talks since the war began.

In a reversal, President Trump appears to have backed off joining a European push for new sanctions on Russia, seemingly eager to move on to doing business deals with it.

KYIV (Reuters) -President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday that Kyiv and its partners were considering arranging a high-level meeting between Ukraine, Russia, the United States, European Union countries and Britain as part of a push to end Moscow's war in Ukraine.

Russian president says resumption of contacts in Istanbul last week suggests parties 'generally moving in the right direction' - Anadolu Ajansı

President Volodymyr Zelensky met with U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio on May 18, following the inaugural mass of Pope Leo XIV, where the leaders discussed sanctions on Russia and recent peace talks in Istanbul.