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Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul

Russia-Ukraine summit pointless unless memorandums finalized — Kremlin

According to Dmitry Peskov, all the work necessary to finalize these memorandums is part of preparing for the meeting

Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov Vyacheslav Prokofyev/Russian Presidential Press and Information Office/TASS

Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov

© Vyacheslav Prokofyev/Russian Presidential Press and Information Office/TASS

MOSCOW, July 23. /TASS/. Coordinating memorandums between Moscow and Kiev should be viewed as a prerequisite for a potential Russian-Ukrainian summit, which Kiev continues to push for, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said during a briefing.

"All the work necessary to finalize these memorandums is part of preparing for the meeting," Peskov stated. "Without completing this difficult groundwork, setting specific dates for a summit makes little sense," the Kremlin spokesman pointed out.

He added that otherwise, "this rough, very complex, and extensive work would have to be done at the highest level."

In remarks about the agenda for the third round of direct Russian-Ukrainian talks set for this evening in Istanbul, Vladimir Zelensky has repeatedly stressed that the priority should be arranging a summit. The Kremlin, however, continues to insist that both sides must first reach agreement on a memorandum detailing the peace process. Draft versions of the document were exchanged during the second round of talks, also held in Istanbul.

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Foreign policy Dmitry Peskov

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