KYIV, Ukraine, May 17, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - The Kremlin on Saturday said a 
meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President 
Volodymyr Zelensky would be possible only after both sides reach an 
agreement, a day after Moscow and Kyiv held their first direct talks in more 
than three years, which did not result in a truce.

The morning after the talks, a Russian drone attack on a minibus carrying 
evacuated civilians in the eastern Sumy region killed nine people and wounded 
five, local authorities said.

"Yesterday, as on any day of this war, there was an opportunity to cease 
fire," Zelensky wrote on social media following the attack, adding that 
"Russia only retains the opportunity to continue killing".

He reiterated his call on Ukraine's allies to step up sanctions on Moscow.

"Without stronger sanctions, without stronger pressure on Russia, there will 
be no real diplomacy there," the Ukrainian president said.

The first direct talks since the spring of 2022 -- shortly after Moscow's 
full-scale invasion that February -- between Ukraine and Russia in Istanbul 
resulted in a concrete agreement to exchange 1,000 prisoners each.

Ukraine's top negotiator, Defence Minister Rustem Umerov, said the "next 
step" would be a meeting between Zelensky and Putin.

Russia said it took note of the request.

"We consider it possible, but only as a result of the work and upon achieving 
certain results in the form of an agreement between the two sides," the 
Kremlin's spokesman said.

Russia's top negotiator, Vladimir Medinsky said that Moscow and Kyiv would 
"present their vision of a possible future ceasefire", without saying when.

The Kremlin said that first the POW swap must be completed and both sides 
need to present their visions for a ceasefire before fixing the next round of 
talks.

"For now, we need to do what the delegations agreed on yesterday" in Turkey, 
spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding that "this, of course, means first and 
foremost to complete a 1,000 for 1,000 swap".

The head of Ukraine's military intelligence Kirillo Budanov told broadcaster 
TSN he hoped the exchange would happen next week and that he saw no hurdles 
to the swap.

- Fighting goes on -

On Saturday, there were few signs of progress towards halting the fighting. 

The bus was attacked near the city of Bilopillya, local community head Yuri 
Zarko told Suspilne TV. A family of three died in the attack, the authorities 
said.

Elsewhere on the frontlines, the Russian army said its troops captured 
Oleksandropil village in the eastern Donetsk region, where some of the most 
intense fighting in the war is ongoing.

Apart from Sumy, Russia pounded missiles and drones across eastern Ukraine, 
hitting the Kherson, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhzhia regions, killing six and 
wounding more than a dozen. In Kherson, Russian shelling hit a truck carrying 
humanitarian aid on Saturday morning.

- 'Real steps' needed -

French President Emmanuel Macron said he was sure that US counterpart Donald 
Trump would react to Putin's "cynicism" on Ukraine following the deadly 
minibus attack.

Putin declined to travel to Turkey for the meeting. Zelensky accused him of 
being "afraid" and Russia of not taking the talks "seriously".

"Yesterday in Istanbul, everyone saw a weak and unprepared Russian delegation 
with no significant powers. This must change. We need real steps to end the 
war," Zelensky said on Saturday.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio welcomed the outcome of the Istanbul talks 
during a phone call with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Saturday, 
Russia's Foreign Ministry said, adding Moscow was ready to continue working 
with the US on the matter.

On Friday, Zelensky attended a European summit in Albania where he urged a 
"strong reaction" from the world if the Istanbul talks failed, including new 
sanctions.

Macron said European nations were coordinating with Washington on additional 
sanctions should Moscow continue to refuse an "unconditional ceasefire".

Both Moscow and Washington have talked up the need for a meeting on the 
conflict between Putin and US President Donald Trump.

Trump has argued that "nothing's going to happen" on the conflict until he 
meets Putin face-to-face.

During the Istanbul talks, the Ukrainian side said Russia was making 
"unacceptable" territorial demands.

Moscow claims annexation of five Ukrainian regions -- four since its 2022 
invasion, and Crimea, which it annexed in 2014.