Negotiations with Russia in Istanbul without the personal participation of the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, are meaningless. Only he, as the initiator of the war, can make decisions, and a delegation without a mandate is just an attempt to buy time and create the illusion of dialogue, states Mykhailo Podolyak, advisor to the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, in a comment to the YouTube channel RBC-Ukraine, APA reports.
Podolyak sharply reacted to media reports that Russia would allegedly be represented at negotiations with Ukraine by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and President Putin's assistant Yuri Ushakov.
"There can be nothing but nonsense when Russia is present. Look, Lavrov and Ushakov are not the people who make the relevant decisions; they do not influence these decisions. They are non-functional individuals who perform, let's say, more of an informational role. Especially Lavrov. He makes certain statements that are not distinguished by adequacy. They (the Russians – ed.) continue to insist through Lavrov on what they began the war with," said the advisor to the head of the President's Office.
Therefore, according to the high-ranking official, if Putin does not personally participate in the negotiations, there will be no point in those negotiations.
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