Ukraine's Zelenskiy insists on face-to-face talks with Putin in Istanbul

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio listens as U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a swearing-in ceremony for the new U.S. ambassador to China, former U.S. Senator David Perdue, at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 7, 2025. REUTERS/Leah Millis/File Photo

KYIV (Reuters) - President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Tuesday he would attend talks with Russia on the war in Ukraine this week only if Vladimir Putin is also there, and goaded him by saying the Russian leader was scared to meet him face-to-face.

The Kremlin has yet to say whether Putin will take part in the talks scheduled to be held in Istanbul on Thursday, more than three years into the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War Two.