Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is set to lead the Russian delegation in talks with Ukraine in Istanbul this Thursday, according to reports from the Azerbaijani news agency APA and the Chinese broadcaster CGTN.

Yuri Usakov, Kremlin aide for foreign policy issues, will also be part of the delegation, these reports suggest.

The reports have not been confirmed by the Kremlin, which so far refuses to comment on whether Putin will participate in peace talks in Turkey.

Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov today emphasized that Moscow continues preparations for Thursday’s peace talks with Ukraine in Istanbul.

When asked whether he could specify who will represent Russia in the negotiations, Peskov replied: “No. Once the president deems it necessary, we will announce it.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated today that he will travel to Turkey. The possibility of US President Donald Trump’s presence there has also been left open.

Zelensky said he will first meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Ankara for talks and will only travel to Istanbul if Putin is there.

Mikhail Podolyak, an advisor to the Ukrainian president, earlier stated that the Ukrainian leader will meet only with Vladimir Putin for negotiations in Turkey on Thursday, and not with other members of the Russian delegation.