There was so much hype about the “peace talks” that were supposed to happen between Russia and Ukraine in Turkey on Thursday. These were to be the first face to face negotiations between the two sides in three years, and many were hoping that they would ultimately lead to an end to the conflict. Unfortunately, these peace talks have turned out to be a total disaster so far. Russian President Vladimir Putin decided not to show up, and he didn’t send Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov either. Instead, he sent a “second-tier delegation” to negotiate with the Ukrainians…
Russia’s Vladimir Putin spurned a challenge to meet face-to-face with Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Turkey on Thursday, instead sending a second-tier delegation to planned peace talks, while Ukraine’s president said his defence minister would head up Kyiv’s team.
They will be the first direct talks between the sides since March 2022, but hopes of a major breakthrough were further dented by U.S. President Donald Trump who said there would be no movement without a meeting between himself and Putin.
It is obvious that the Russians do not have high hopes for these negotiations.
But at least the Russians showed up to talk.
Instead of going to the talks in Istanbul, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy flew into an airport in Ankara and loudly complained to the press about the fact that Putin was not planning to personally participate in the negotiations…
“We don’t yet know the official level of Russians, but from what we see, it looks phony,” Zelensky told reporters in Ankara. So despite the Ukrainian leader earlier declaring “I am here” upon landing in Turkey, he is not in fact at the Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul.
This ‘I am here’ yet not actually ‘there’ charade generated some contradictory headlines earlier on Thursday. Zelensky continues his performative gestures aimed at impressing one man: Trump. He even explained that he is sending Defense Minister Rustem Umerov to head the Ukrainian delegation for the Istanbul meeting, now likely underway, out of respect for Trump and the peace process he initiated.
So the Russian negotiating team literally spent the day in Istanbul “with no one to talk to on the Ukrainian side”…
While Zelenskyy waited in vain for Putin in Ankara, the Russian negotiating team sat in Istanbul with no one to talk to on the Ukrainian side. Some 200 reporters milled around near the Dolmabahce Palace on the Bosphorus that the Russians had specified as the talks venue.
It appears that Zelenskyy may allow his negotiating team to talk to the Russians on Friday, but he is already making it very clear that his government is in no mood to do much compromising…
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said Kyiv will never recognize parts of Ukraine that are currently occupied as parts of Russia, as he confirmed peace talks are set to go ahead.
“In all discussions – and I emphasize this – and this is my unwavering position – we do not legally recognize any of our temporarily occupied territories as Russian. This is the Ukrainian land,” Zelensky told journalists.
I don’t see much good coming out of these talks.
And apparently President Trump doesn’t either, because he just told reporters that “nothing’s going to happen” until he meets with Putin himself…
President Trump said Thursday he wasn’t at all surprised Russian President Vladimir Putin was snubbing peace talks with Ukraine – insisting “nothing’s going to happen” until he meets with him personally.
Trump, who had pushed for Putin to sit down with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Turkey later on Thursday, made the remarks as he brushed off the Russian leader’s decision to skip the high-stakes talks.
“Look, nothing’s going to happen until Putin and I get together. Okay?” Trump said aboard Air Force One when asked about the upcoming meeting.
This is bad news.
We really need to end this conflict in Ukraine before it spirals out of control.
There have already been so many times when Russian forces and NATO forces have come dangerously close to shooting at one another.
In fact, there was another major incident just this week…
Estonian sea and air forces stalked and tried to board an oil tanker thought to be part of Russia’s shadow fleet – but it fought back.
The tanker called Jaguar was draped in the Gabon flag, but Britain sanctioned it on Friday – accusing it of being a Russian pawn.
Nato aircraft – including Polish MiG-29s – were scrambled when the vessel refused to cooperate.
In response, Russia scrambled a Su-35S fighter jet which is said to have violated Estonian airspace as it stormed in to cover for the fleeing Jaguar.
What would have happened if NATO aircraft and Russian aircraft had started shooting at one another?
Thankfully, we didn’t find out.
But we need to stop this madness while we still can.
If both sides just continue to escalate the war in Ukraine, it is just a matter of time before the unthinkable happens.
Needless to say, we are not at all prepared for such a scenario.
In fact, new missile silos for the new U.S. nuclear missiles that are currently being developed will not be ready until next decade…
As a result, the Air Force will build new silos primarily on federally owned land within existing missile fields across the states of Colorado, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota and Wyoming.
Developed by Northrop Grumman, Sentinel aims to replace 400 aging Minuteman III missiles, but its US$141 billion price tag—driven mainly by launch infrastructure—has delayed its debut beyond 2029.
The Russian nuclear arsenal is far superior to our rapidly aging nuclear arsenal.
And Russian anti-missile systems are vastly superior to what we have.
In recent years the Russians have been feverishly preparing to fight a nuclear war, and now we are trying to play catch up.
So perhaps we should find a peaceful way out of this mess while we still can.
Michael’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.
About the Author: Michael Snyder’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com. He has also written nine other books that are available on Amazon.com including “Chaos”, “End Times”, “7 Year Apocalypse”, “Lost Prophecies Of The Future Of America”, “The Beginning Of The End”, and “Living A Life That Really Matters”. When you purchase any of Michael’s books you help to support the work that he is doing. You can also get his articles by email as soon as he publishes them by subscribing to his Substack newsletter. Michael has published thousands of articles on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and he always freely and happily allows others to republish those articles on their own websites. These are such troubled times, and people need hope. John 3:16 tells us about the hope that God has given us through Jesus Christ: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” If you have not already done so, we strongly urge you to invite Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior today.