President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine said that if President Trump attended the talks, it would put pressure Russia’s leader, Vladimir V. Putin, to meet face-to-face.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky raised the stakes ahead of a potential meeting with Vladimir Putin in Turkey on Thursday by saying he wouldn’t hold talks with any Russian representative other than the president himself.

The president said he's optimistic about Thursday's expected talks between Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky in Istanbul.