Istanbul — it’s where Asia meets Europe, but as we now know, not where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin. The world's media descended on the Turkish city on May 15,

Vladimir Medinsky, the head of Russia's delegation at peace talks on Ukraine in Turkey, said on Thursday that Moscow's aim was to secure a long-lasting peace with Kyiv by looking for common ground and removing the reasons for the conflict.

The first direct peace talks between Ukraine and Russian in three years due to get underway in Turkey on Thursday were thrown into doubt in a dispute over the seniority of their respective delegations.