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No, Vladimir Putin did not go to Istanbul for the mano a mano on offer.

Instead, in critics call a worse snub than an empty chair, the Russian president dispatching his culture minister, a ‘greater Russia’ ideologue… this for the first face-to-face meeting with Ukraine since 2022. What’s the Trump administration next move after pushing so hard for talks?

We know Zelenskiy’s next move, travelling to Ankara instead of Istanbul where the Ukrainian president met his Turkish counterpart… Turkey whose star power is on the rise with its influence unseating that of Moscow in neighboring Syria and Trump heaping praise on a fellow NATO ally whose role as Black Sea arbiter and arms exporter could prove crucial.

Then there’s Ukraine’s European allies, talking tougher on sanctions and nuclear deterrence. Part of that’s about Putin, part of it about Trump. Emmanuel Macron also this week spoke of territorial concessions. The idea, that the time for talks is approaching. If so, do Paris, London, Berlin, Warsaw and friends have a plan?

Produced by François Picard, Rebecca Gnignati, Juliette Laffont, Annarosa Zampaglione, Alessandro Xenos.

Putin snubs talks: Does Trump pivot towards Ukraine?

The Debate

Putin snubs talks: Does Trump pivot towards Ukraine?