Zelensky Playing Games He Accuses Putin Of Playing. Going To Ankara To “Wait” For Putin Is Childish. Whoever Shows In Istanbul Wins. Don’t Listen To Advisors. It’s The Optics, Not Ego.
Zelensky Playing Games He Is Accusing Putin Of Playing
Going To Ankara To “Wait” For Putin Is Childish
Question: Does President Zelensky Want To End The War More Than President Putin Wants It To Continue?
Whoever Shows In Istanbul Wins
It’s The Optics, Stupid
President Zelensky Was On The Right Track
He Is Letting Advisors And Ego Derail It
President Zelensky Must Show In Istanbul Regardless Of Who Shows For The Russian Federation
Meeting With Whomever Is Present Reinforces Optic That Government Of Ukraine Wants The War To End
President Zelensky’s Global Messaging Will Have Greater Resonance By Having Participated In A Discussion/Negotiation Directly With Representatives Of The Government Of The Russian Federation.
Again, Mykhailo Podolyak, self-identified as an advisor to Mr. Andriy Yermak, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, demonstrates a uniqueness for failing to read the room and failing to appreciate the audience. More accurately, failing to recognize the composition of the audience. Delivering poison.
Not the first time since 24 February 2022 that an inflated ego has negatively impacted the government of Ukraine.
Unfortunately, thus far at least, the boss of his boss, Volodymyr Zelensky, President of Ukraine (2019-2024; term extended due to imposition of martial law in 2022), is mimicking the advice.
President Zelensky has said he will travel to Ankara, Turkiye, for a discussion/negotiation in capital with Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of the Republic of Turkiye (2014- ). Then, if Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation (2000-2008 and 2012- ) travels to Istanbul, he and President Erdogan will travel to Istanbul.
Mr. Podolyak recklessly prognosticates that President Zelensky should meet only with President on Thursday, 15 May 2025, in Istanbul because a discussion/negotiation with anyone else would be “pointless” as anyone other than President Putin is not a decision-maker. On this last observation, that President Putin is the decision-maker, Mr. Podolyak is accurate.
Unfortunately, Mr. Podolyak is again permitting his ego to trample the dead, injured, and massive destruction of infrastructure delivered throughout Ukraine since 24 February 2022 by the armed forces of the Russian Federation.
He also ignores a trajectory that commenced with a statement by President Putin, a date set by President Putin, and a and location set by President Putin. True, President Putin may have not specifically said he would lead direct discussions/negotiations in Istanbul, but he also did not specifically say he would not do so. President Zelensky accepted from President Putin an invitation that President Putin did not offer. That was smart politics.
The first head of state to arrive in Istanbul wins the global media narrative. Who made the effort and who did not make the effort. The one in Istanbul has the opportunity to deliver the narrative.
President Zelensky speaks of a “strong, united, tough” response by governments if the government of the Russian Federation does not embrace a thirty-day cease fire and if President Putin does not travel to Istanbul. Alright, but the impact of the response will be limited in terms of messaging, optics, if President Zelensky does not travel to Istanbul.
For a government that since 24 February 2022 has been focused intently upon optics- and in some instances basing military decisions upon optics rather than what governments supporting the government of Ukraine believed appropriate in terms of risk versus reward, this week Mr. Podolyak is an outlier- and hopefully he will remain in that capacity. He should certainly not be in Istanbul this week.
If President Zelensky refuses to meet with whomever leads the delegation representing the government of the Russian Federation- Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation (2004- ), or anyone else, President Zelensky will have failed at seizing the optic victory.
President Zelensky does not gain much, if anything, by the “performance” of traveling eight hours by train from Ukraine to Poland and then on the government of Ukraine Airbus ACJ319-115 ACJ (Registration UR-ABA with call sign Ukraine Air Enterprise) for approximately two hours to Ankara, Turkiye. The “prize” optic is arriving to İstanbul Havalimanı (IST) and traveling by motorcade to the location of the discussion/negotiation with representatives of the government of the Russian Federation, regardless of who comprises that delegation.
When since 24 February 2022 has the government of Ukraine participated in a face-to-face discussion/negotiation with representatives from the government of the Russian Federation and government of the United States?
If President Putin does not participate at the discussion/negotiation in Istanbul, then President Zelensky will have a globally impactful opportunity to further frame the television, radio, print, and online narrative.
The moment will belong to who show’s up in Istanbul. Important to remember that Istanbul is a moment in a series of moments that represent the Russian Federation-Ukraine war. Each moment builds upon the previous moment.
If the government of the Russian Federation designates Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation (2004- ) to lead of be a member of the official delegation, that opens the proverbial diplomatic door for the government of Ukraine to designate Andriy Yermak, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine (2020- ), and Andrii Sybiha, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine (2024- ) to lead its official delegation.
Significantly, absent President Putin further opens the proverbial diplomatic door for Donald Trump, 47th President of the United States (2025-2029) to designate Marco Rubio, United States Secretary of State (2025- ), Keith Kellogg, United States Special Envoy for Ukraine and Russia (2025- ), and Steven Witkoff, Assistant to the President, Senior Advisor, and Special Envoy (2025- ) to participate in the discussion/negotiation if the government of the Russian Federation and government of Ukraine ask them to participate.
Whomever the government of the Russian Federation delivers to Istanbul should be met by President Zelensky. That is how to curry favor not only with those who support the government of Ukraine, but with those who remain on the fence and with those who do not.
President Putin proposed Thursday, 15 May 2025, for bilateral discussions/negotiations by the government of the Russian Federation and government of Ukraine. As of now, the participation of President Putin remains uncertain.
There is monitoring of government of the Russian Federation military aircraft and civil aviation aircraft which accompany him on international travel. Travel time from Moscow to IST is approximately four hours.
