ISTANBUL: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was meeting with top Turkish and Ukrainian officials in Istanbul Friday, ahead of the first direct Russia-Ukraine talks in three years, officials on both sides said.
Rubio had on Thursday played down hope of progress at the meeting, saying "we don't have high expectations," but has nonetheless flown in to throw his weight behind the effort.
After landing in Turkey's largest city, Rubio went straight into talks at Dolmabahce Palace with his Turkish and Ukrainian counterparts, Hakan Fidan and Andriy Sybiga, respectively.
Also present at the meeting were Washington's envoy to Turkiye Tom Barrack and the US envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg as well as Ukraine's presidential chief of staff Andriy Yermak and Defence Minister Rustem Umerov, a Turkish foreign ministry source said.
Official photos from the meeting showed that Turkiye's spy chief Ibrahim Kalin was also present as was its former Moscow envoy, Mehmet Samsar.
Rubio himself was not expected to join the peace talks.
A source at Turkiye's foreign ministry had initially said the Russia-Ukraine talks would begin at 0930 GMT, although other officials said the exact timings appeared to be in flux.
Also ahead of the talks, Michael Anton, the State Department head of policy planning, was to hold a meeting with the Russian delegation at Dolmabahce, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said.
Zelensky sent a pared-down team to the Istanbul talks after Russia showed up with a relatively low-level delegation.
Neither Sybiga nor Yermak are part of the Ukrainian delegation to the talks, which will be led by Defence Minister Rustem Umerov.
The Russian side is headed by Vladimir Medinsky, a hawkish adviser to Putin who has questioned Ukraine's right to exist and led failed talks at the start of the war.
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Rubio meets top Turkiye, Ukraine officials ahead of war talks
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Rubio meets top Turkiye, Ukraine officials ahead of war talks
Chinese, Iranian warships in South Africa for exercises
- China-led exercises near main navy base are also meant to involve Russia
- Drills risk further straining South Africa’s ties with the United States
SIMON’S TOWN, South Africa: Chinese and Iranian warships were docked off South Africa’s main navy base Thursday ahead of exercises that officials said were also meant to involve Russia.
The January 9-16 “Will for Peace” drill hosted by South Africa risks further straining its ties with the United States, which is in dispute with many of the countries taking part.
AFP journalists saw two Chinese ships in Cape Town’s False Bay harbor on Wednesday, joined by an Iranian vessel on Thursday.
South African navy officials said warships from Russia were also expected to take part in the China-led exercises.
The drill was focused on the “safety of shipping and maritime economic activities,” the South African defense force said in December when it announced the maneuvers.
It was intended to “deepen cooperation in support of peaceful maritime security initiatives,” it said.
The statement said the exercise would involve navies from BRICS countries.
BRICS, originally made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, has expanded to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and, more recently, Indonesia.
The joint drills — previously known as Exercise Mosi — were initially scheduled for November 2025 but were postponed due to a clash with the G20 summit in Johannesburg.
South Africa’s Democratic Alliance (DA), a member of the ruling unity government, said parliament had not been “properly briefed” on the drills, including cost, command structure and diplomatic consequences.
“South Africa’s defense and foreign policy must be transparent, constitutional, and principled and certainly not being quietly reshaped through military exercises that contradict our stated neutrality and damage our standing in the world,” DA spokesperson on defense, Chris Hattingh, said in a statement.
The center-right party — which joined government after the African National Congress lost its majority in 2024 due to voter disillusionment with corruption and mismanagement — vowed to demand full transparency in parliament.
President Donald Trump has accused countries in the BRICS group of emerging nations of “anti-American” policies.
South Africa has drawn US criticism for its close ties with Russia and a range of other policies, including its decision to bring a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice over the Gaza war.
South Africa’s military was criticized for hosting naval exercises with Russia and China in 2023 that coincided with the one-year anniversary of the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine.
The three countries first conducted joint naval drills in 2019.
The January 9-16 “Will for Peace” drill hosted by South Africa risks further straining its ties with the United States, which is in dispute with many of the countries taking part.
AFP journalists saw two Chinese ships in Cape Town’s False Bay harbor on Wednesday, joined by an Iranian vessel on Thursday.
South African navy officials said warships from Russia were also expected to take part in the China-led exercises.
The drill was focused on the “safety of shipping and maritime economic activities,” the South African defense force said in December when it announced the maneuvers.
It was intended to “deepen cooperation in support of peaceful maritime security initiatives,” it said.
The statement said the exercise would involve navies from BRICS countries.
BRICS, originally made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, has expanded to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and, more recently, Indonesia.
The joint drills — previously known as Exercise Mosi — were initially scheduled for November 2025 but were postponed due to a clash with the G20 summit in Johannesburg.
South Africa’s Democratic Alliance (DA), a member of the ruling unity government, said parliament had not been “properly briefed” on the drills, including cost, command structure and diplomatic consequences.
“South Africa’s defense and foreign policy must be transparent, constitutional, and principled and certainly not being quietly reshaped through military exercises that contradict our stated neutrality and damage our standing in the world,” DA spokesperson on defense, Chris Hattingh, said in a statement.
The center-right party — which joined government after the African National Congress lost its majority in 2024 due to voter disillusionment with corruption and mismanagement — vowed to demand full transparency in parliament.
President Donald Trump has accused countries in the BRICS group of emerging nations of “anti-American” policies.
South Africa has drawn US criticism for its close ties with Russia and a range of other policies, including its decision to bring a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice over the Gaza war.
South Africa’s military was criticized for hosting naval exercises with Russia and China in 2023 that coincided with the one-year anniversary of the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine.
The three countries first conducted joint naval drills in 2019.
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