Trump envoys to go to Turkey for Russia-Ukraine talks

US President Donald Trump's senior envoys will travel to Istanbul for potential talks on Thursday on how to end the war in Ukraine, three sources familiar with the plans said on Tuesday.

Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, unleashing a war that has killed hundreds of thousands of soldiers on both sides.

Envoys Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg will attempt to revive Trump's stalled push to broker peace in the conflict, which he has repeatedly promised to end.

US officials are hoping Russia will agree to a comprehensive 30-day land, air, sea and critical infrastructure ceasefire, a senior US official said, adding that Kyiv has already agreed to abide by such a deal.

The White House, State Department, National Security Council and a spokesperson for Witkoff did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Tuesday said he would only attend the talks if Russia's Vladimir Putin is also there, challenging the Kremlin to show it is genuine about seeking peace.

A senior US official said it was unclear who would represent Russia and that Washington did not expect an announcement about Moscow's plans until early Thursday morning.

Moscow has not said whether Putin will travel to Turkey.

Asked directly on Tuesday who would represent Russia, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "As soon as the president sees fit, we will announce it."

Kellogg, in an interview on Fox Business Network's Mornings with Maria on Tuesday, said Zelenskiy would be at the meeting in Istanbul on Thursday and that, if Putin shows up, Trump would join the talks.

"We're hoping President Putin shows up as well, and then President Trump will be there. This could be an absolutely incredible meeting," he said.

"We can get peace, I really believe, pretty fast if all three leaders sit down and talk."

Trump had said on Monday he would fly to Istanbul for the meeting if necessary. He is in the Middle East region this week for meetings with officials from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.

US officials over the weekend had urged Zelenskiy to agree to meet Putin in person in Istanbul and to announce his plans publicly to openly show his intentions to negotiate with Moscow on a peace deal.