Istanbul. File photoANKARA, Mar 27The next meeting of the delegations of Russia and Ukraine will be held in Istanbul, the office of the President of Turkey said. They noted that Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan had agreed on this. and Ukraine and improving the humanitarian situation in the region, and also said that Turkey will continue to contribute to this process in every possible way,» the office added. Earlier, presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky said that the Russian and Ukrainian delegations would meet in person on March 29-30, but he didn't specify where exactly this would happen.Why is Ukraine dragging out negotiations and why is it beneficial for the WestRussian-Ukrainian negotiations started on February 28. They are held both in the form of meetings of delegations on the territory of Belarus, and via videoconference. The Russian delegation is headed by Medinsky. According to him, Russia insists on a comprehensive treaty that would fix the neutral status and security guarantees of Ukraine, its demilitarization and denazification, the recognition of Crimea and Donbass, and other positions. At the same time, Medinsky noted, representatives of Kyiv are trying to drag out negotiations, so there is no big progress forward. Since February 24, Russia has been conducting a special military operation to demilitarize and denazify Ukraine. President Vladimir Putin called its goal «the protection of people who have been subjected to harassment and genocide by the Kiev regime for eight years.» According to the Ministry of Defense, the Armed Forces strike only at military infrastructure and Ukrainian troops. With the support of the Russian military, the DPR and LPR groups are developing an offensive. But the occupation of Ukraine is out of the question, Putin emphasized.
