Putin preparing for offensive, Istanbul talks unlikely to happen — expert

He said this on the Espreso TV channel.

“First, the meeting will not take place. It is unlikely that Putin will visit Istanbul under the current circumstances. Unless Trump suddenly decides to come, then the situation may change. But, on the other hand, even this is unlikely to lead to anything. As of today, there are objectively no prerequisites, from the point of view of the Russians, to stop the war,” Andriushchenko believes.

According to him, the Russians believe everything is going well: the economy is holding up for now, and they are confident they can endure at least until autumn. Putin is preparing for a major offensive, particularly in the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions.

“In Putin’s mind, it looks like this: he can push - and perhaps in the summer our front will shift or even collapse. They hope to advance toward Zaporizhzhia and further in the direction of Dnipro. In their view, this would allow them to be in a much stronger negotiating position by autumn.

From our side, the situation is clear: we seek peace, but at the same time, we are prepared for developments according to the Russian scenario. Most likely, that scenario will fail, and then it is we who will have the stronger negotiating position in the autumn. At present, there is no common ground - neither from our side nor from Russia's. In other words, there are currently no real preconditions for negotiations - neither from a military nor an economic standpoint,” Andriushchenko noted.

• Russian leader Vladimir Putin has said he’s ready to hold direct talks with Ukraine in Turkey next week, but rejected the idea of a 30-day ceasefire. At the same time, he ignored the idea of a 30-day truce. In response, U.S. leader Donald Trump said he would continue to work with both sides, and that the coming week would be “great.”
• President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he would "personally" wait for Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Turkey on May 15.
• Ukrainian MP Oleksandr Merezhko believes that Putin will not come to Istanbul, but there are several possible scenarios for the development of events.