Pjotr Sauer

Ukrainian president says if Russian leader does not arrive it will indicate ‘that he does not want to end the war’

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has doubled down on his promise to wait in Turkey on Thursday for face-to-face talks with Vladimir Putin, calling it a test of Russia’s willingness to pursue peace.

Speaking to journalists in Kyiv on Tuesday, Zelenskyy said he planned to wait for Putin in Ankara alongside the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, adding that he would travel to Istanbul if Putin opted to hold the meeting there.

Russia says its defences shot down two drones en route to capital, where preparations are under way for Victory Day parade

Ukrainian drones targeted Moscow on Tuesday as the first foreign leaders landed in the capital ahead of a major military parade marking the end of the second world war.

Sergei Sobyanin, the mayor of Moscow, said Russian air defences shot down two drones en route to the capital on Tuesday evening.