Opinion by Asli Aydintasbas: Why Russian negotiators, oligarchs and exiles are flocking to Turkey
Turkish officials think these small steps could pave the way for a potential meeting between Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s charismatic president, within several weeks. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has recently said that Putin needs an “Story continues below advertisement
But Ukrainians are skeptical. They fear that Russia is playing nice because it is bogged down in Kyiv and other parts of the country, where Ukrainian resistance has been stiff. They believe Russia’s gesture is intended to slow down Ukrainian military progress in reclaiming some key towns, and that Russians want a respite only to resupply and receive a new round of scheduled recruitments in mid-April.
The truth is probably somewhere in the middle: Russians still have military goals they hope to achieve and the war is far from over, but progress has also been made on some important issues. The secret ingredient for any cease-fire deal will probably have to be tacit U.S. engagement — the Biden administration signaling that the end of war would bring conditional, incremental sanctions relief to Russia. And that’s still not on the table.
Dissidents and official delegations are not the only Russians in town. Russia’s politicians and oligarchs — and their boats — are slowly showing up, too. A
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