The first direct peace talks between Ukraine and Russian in three years due to get underway in Turkey on Thursday were thrown into doubt in a dispute over the seniority of their respective delegations.

Moscow’s massacres of Ukrainian civilians blew apart any semblance of good faith as Washington pushed for talks

Ukraine had framed Zelensky's demand for a face-to-face meeting with Putin as a test of Russia's true willingness to negotiate peace. Arriving in Turkey, he slammed the Russian delegation as "theatrical" and contrasted it to Ukraine's high-level group.