Istanbul - The first face-to-face talks in nearly three weeks between Russia and Ukraine began Tuesday in Turkey. The talks offer hopes of progress to end to a war that has ground into a bloody campaign of destruction. Air raid sirens however, sounded across Ukraine before dawn on Tuesday.

Moscow and Kiev have previously held three rounds of in-person talks and further contacts via video link, but the exchanges have failed to yield a major result.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan welcomed delegations from both sides saying, “We hope the meetings will be beneficial for both countries and the region, as Turkey is deeply worried about the conflict”.

He also expressed hope that the summit would pave a way for direct talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky.

Turkey also hosted discussions between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Kuleba in Antalya on March 10.

Cold Welcome
The talks, reported Ukrainian television, began with "a cold welcome" and no handshake between the delegations.

Ukraine and the United States hold little hope of an immediate breakthrough. But the resumption of face-to-face talks is a major step towards a ceasefire in a Russian invasion. The biggest attack since World War II is stalled on most fronts but inflicting horrible suffering on civilians trapped in the besieged cities.

Footage from inside the Dolmabahce palace in Istanbul where the talks took place showed Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich in attendance, though it was not immediately clear in what role reported Reuters.

Moscow’s stated list of demands for Kiev includes the recognition of Crimea as part of Russia, and the breakaway Donbass republics of Donetsk and Lugansk as independent states.

Kiev says the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked and has denied claims it was planning to retake the two republics by force.
-AP/Reuters/RT