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Türkiye expects Ukraine peace negotiations to continue in Istanbul but has received no concrete signals about when the next round will occur, a Turkish diplomatic source told Russian media outlet RIA Novosti on Tuesday.
The European Union's foreign policy chief, meanwhile, urged Russia to abandon the battlefield and negotiate.
The source, responding to questions about possible timing for the next round of talks, said, "We expect the negotiations to continue. But we have no concrete signals yet about their resumption or when the next round will be."
Türkiye has hosted three rounds of direct peace talks between Russia and Ukraine since the conflict began, with meetings held on May 16, June 2, and July 23 at Istanbul's Ciragan Palace.
The most recent round lasted approximately one hour.
The Istanbul negotiations produced major prisoner swaps and an exchange of draft memorandums outlining both sides' positions for a future peace deal.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov previously stated that Russian and Ukrainian delegations "met and will meet in Istanbul to discuss specific military and humanitarian issues."
He also recalled Russia's proposal to raise the level of delegation heads at the negotiations in Türkiye.
During the third round of talks in late July, Russia proposed that Ukraine form three working groups that would operate online, according to Vladimir Medinsky, assistant to the Russian president who headed the Russian delegation.
Medinsky noted that the positions of Russia and Ukraine on draft memorandums for settlement remain "very far apart," adding that a meeting between the leaders of Russia and Ukraine should "put an end point" to the negotiations.
European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas called on Russia to leave the battlefield during a European Parliament session dedicated to Ukraine.
"Russia's message is simple: this war cannot be won. Leave the battlefield and sit down at the table with Ukraine," Kallas said in her address to the parliament.
Kallas emphasized that the West is united in providing security guarantees to Ukraine, stating, "There are now serious commitments on the table of the Coalition of the Willing."
The EU foreign policy chief later noted that the EU and member states have provided approximately €169 billion ($198.8B) in financial support since the war began, including over €63 billion ($74.1B) in military assistance.
"This year alone, member countries will provide more support than ever before—€25 billion ($29.4B). To date, they have provided 80% of our 2 million rounds of ammunition target. We aim for 100% by October," Kallas said.
She warned that when peace is achieved, Russia must not be allowed to rearm and attack again, noting that Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened to attack "all Western forces in the field, including peacekeeping forces" the day after the Sept. 4 Coalition of the Willing meeting in Paris.
"This means Russia is seriously escalating tensions and directly undermining European security," Kallas stated.
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Kallas also underlined that Ukraine has taken necessary steps on its membership path, declaring, "The time has come to start negotiations for the first cluster of chapters."
The EU decided to start negotiations with Ukraine on Dec. 14-15, 2023.
The first Intergovernmental Conference was held on June 25, 2024, but opening chapters requires unanimity from all 27 EU members. Hungary is currently vetoing this process.
Kallas stressed that Putin "has no interest in peace and will not stop the war unless forced to," referencing what she called Russia's largest air attack of the war over the weekend.
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