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.

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

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky challenged his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday to meet him in person this week for the peace talks in Istanbul — just as President Trump suggested he should.