Moscow's goal in the expected peace talks with Ukraine in Istanbul is achieving "sustainable peace" by addressing the "root causes of the conflict" rather than a ceasefire, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on May 15.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy states that his arrival in Türkiye is already a message to Russian president Vladimir Putin, according to Sky News. Journalists asked Zelenskyy whether he had a message for Putin.

The Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) free trade deal with Iran went into effect on Thursday, paving the way for increased trade across sectors ranging from agriculture to metals, a senior Russian official was quoted as saying.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has taken center stage at Russia’s Victory Day parade on Friday, surrounding himself by friendly world leaders in a highly choreographed show designed to show the Western world that Russia is far from isolated.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping sat for one-on-one talks over tea on Thursday as they continued meetings in Moscow.

Moscow’s massacres of Ukrainian civilians blew apart any semblance of good faith as Washington pushed for talks

Ukraine had framed Zelensky's demand for a face-to-face meeting with Putin as a test of Russia's true willingness to negotiate peace. Arriving in Turkey, he slammed the Russian delegation as "theatrical" and contrasted it to Ukraine's high-level group.

Russia's position on a possible peace deal with Ukraine has changed to reflect changes on the frontlines where Russia has been advancing, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday.