Macron, Starmer Blast ‘Unacceptable’ Russian Stance In Talks, Zelensky Urges More Sanctions

Update(11:30ET): Zelensky in a phone call with President Trump soon on the heels of the Istanbul meeting, which lasted just under two hours, touted that he’s willing to “take the fastest possible steps to bring real peace” – but the West needs to hold “a strong stance”. Also on the group call were the leaders of Britain, France, Germany and Poland.

Zelensky after the phone call told reporters that “pressure on Russia must be maintained”. He stated: “Our position — if the Russians reject a full and unconditional ceasefire and an end to killings, tough sanctions must follow.”

Kiev’s top European allies blasted Russia’s stance as presented in Istanbul “unacceptable”:

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, joined by French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish leader Donald Tusk, said in a statement on Friday that “the Russian position is clearly unacceptable, and not for the first time,” according to Reuters.

And PM Starmer followed by saying, “As a result of that meeting with President Zelensky and the discussion with President Trump, we are now closely aligning and coordinating our responses and will continue to do so.”

But importantly, neither side has yet shut the door on the possibility of more rounds of direct Russia-Ukraine talks. Certainly the Trump White House wants to see this happen.

As for the Russian delegation, its head Vladimir Medinsky announced that “each side will present its vision of a possible future ceasefire, detailing it in writing.” Here’s the Russian readout:

We are satisfied with the outcome and ready to continue our contacts. Here is what has been agreed:
First, in the coming days, there will be a large-scale prisoner exchange: 1,000 for 1,000 people.
Second, the Ukrainian side has requested direct talks between the heads of state. We have taken this request under advisement.
And third, we have agreed that each side will present its vision of a possible future ceasefire, detailing it in writing. Once these visions have been presented, we believe it is appropriate-as has also been agreed-to continue our negotiations.”

Ukraine is likely to continue pushing for Europe and the US to ramp up the sanctions campaign, and to commit more money and weapons.

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The leaders of the UK, France, Germany and Poland said Russia’s position at its talks with Ukraine on Friday was “unacceptable,” after a holding a phone conversation with President Donald Trump.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, joined by French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish leader Donald Tusk, said in a statement on Friday that “the Russian position is clearly unacceptable, and not for the first time,” according to Reuters.

The four leaders were speaking on the sidelines of a European meeting in Tirana, Albania, where they were joined by Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky and held a group call with President Trump.

“As a result of that meeting with President Zelensky and the discussion with President Trump, we are now closely aligning and coordinating our responses and will continue to do so,” he said,” Starmer said, according to Reuters.

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The Friday meeting between Ukrainian and Russian officials, the first direct engagement of its kind in some three years, has ended, according to Turkey’s foreign ministry, and lasted a little under two hours.

Each side will in the aftermath convey to the press its version of things, and Ukraine has been right out the gate telling CNN that there was nothing meaningful to come out of these first talks.

A Ukrainian source said the Russia delegation “did not have a mandate to make important decisions” and that “they are not ready to decide anything meaningful to end the war.”

Many international headlines Thursday described the team of junior officials sent by the Kremlin as an ‘insult’ to the peace process; however, it’s also the case that no matter who President Putin sends, he is the one who will ultimately make the decisions.

Wall Street Journal has described that “The talks, in the Dolmabahçe Palace in Istanbul, came about as the result of President Trump’s pressure, so far mostly applied on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, to find an end to the war.”

But, “Just as the negotiations started, Russia struck near the Ukrainian city of Dnipro with a salvo of ballistic missiles, according to local officials.”

And Reuters agrees in its assessment that there are “no apparent sign of progress so far in narrowing the gap between the sides, and a Ukrainian source called Moscow’s demands ‘non-starters’.

Neither side has so far offered no major concessions, and issues like permanent control over Crimea and the four eastern territories remain sticking points for Moscow. 

During the Istanbul meeting, according to WSJ’s foreign correspondent Yaroslav Trofimov:

Russia demanded in Istanbul that Ukraine withdraw its troops from four regions — areas that Moscow has been trying to conquer but failed since 2022 — as a precondition for ceasefire. That’s an area twice the size of the country of Lebanon and home to more than a million Ukrainians. Not going to happen.

Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson were annexed in 2022, declared part of the Russian Federation, but Moscow forces still don’t have 100% control over them.

The talks in Istanbul lasted fewer than 2 hours and led nowhere, it looks. Russia demanded that Ukraine surrender, Ukraine refused. https://t.co/WR5A5jcI4e

— Yaroslav Trofimov (@yarotrof) May 16, 2025

And it doesn’t look like there was any progress on achieving a Trump and Zelensky-backed 30-day ceasefire. Moscow sees this as a tactic for Ukraine forces to simply rearm and regroup, at a moment they are in dire need of more manpower and artillery. 

President Zelensky has meanwhile been making clear that Ukraine will not surrender its territory as “this is Ukraine’s land” – and he isn’t so much as ready to even offer Crimea. Zelensky and European leaders are reportedly holding a phone call with US President Trump in the wake of the Istanbul meeting.

They will likely try to convince the US leader that attempts to negotiate an end to the war with Putin are futile. This seems to have been Zelensky’s aim all along: getting Washington and Trump back on his side, and securing the unending flow of weapons, cash, and intelligence.