David Arakhamia, a member of the Ukrainian delegation negotiating with Russia on Saturday said talks between the two sides had advanced to a stage where there was a possibility “direct consultations” between Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

“We announced our Ukrainian position in Istanbul. And the Russian Federation has given an official answer to all these positions, which is that they accept this position, except for the issue of Crimea,” Arakhamia said on Saturday on nationally televised remarks.

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Arakhamia said that Ukraine had highlighted its position, including its willingness to discuss neutrality on the condition of security guarantees from an international alliance, adding, “Orally, as of yesterday, in a video conference, we heard that the Russian side does not object to such [Ukrainian] positions.”

On the question of discussions between the heads of the two warring states, the negotiator said, “The drafts of the documents were sufficiently developed to hold direct consultations between the two leaders, the presidents of Ukraine and the Russian Federation. Therefore, our task now is to quickly prepare the final stage not of the document itself, but of the issues we have already touched upon, and to prepare for a possible meeting of the presidents.”

“Yesterday, Mr. Erdogan called both us and Vladimir Putin. He also allegedly confirmed for his part they are ready to organize a meeting in the near future. Neither the date nor the place is known. But we believe that with a high probability it will be in Istanbul or Ankara, that is, in Turkey,” Arakhamia added.

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However, the negotiator effectively ruled out the possibility of China serving as a security guarantor for Ukraine, saying, “We are negotiating through diplomatic channels. The state of negotiations with China is probably the least ready compared to the countries that are now actively helping us, and we keep in touch twice a day. With China, it’s getting a little harder.”

Although Arakhamia revealed no dates, a meeting between the Zelensky and Putin in the near future might mark a turning point that finally leads to a ceasefire.