Moscow threatens to call off talks in Istanbul in response to Operation Spider's Web – source in Ukraine's Defence Ministry

The Russian delegation has threatened to call off the negotiations in Istanbul in response to the Ukrainian Security Service’s operation Pavutyna ("Spider’s Web"), which resulted in the destruction of 41 Russian aircraft on 1 June.

Source: an Ukrainska Pravda source in the Ministry of Defence familiar with the course of the negotiations

Details: The source said that the talks are progressing, but Moscow is deliberately focusing on minor issues to delay the process.

"There is definitely [progress in the negotiations – Ukrainska Pravda]. But the secondary nature of the issues that Russia wants to discuss indicates that they are deliberately delaying and looking for any mechanisms to do that in the course of the negotiations," the source said.

Additionally, the source noted that the recent Operation Spider's Web conducted by the Security Service of Ukraine, which targeted 41 Russian military aircraft, including strategic bombers and an A-50, has also affected the course of the talks.

"The Russian side clearly stated that there is a risk of disruption of any negotiations and continuation of hostilities because of such steps," the source said.

However, the source said Moscow has not changed its approach to its demands.

"The demands were the same as at the first meeting. First, withdrawal from the territory of five oblasts – Kursk, Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson. Only then is a ceasefire possible."

The source also confirmed that Vladimir Medinsky remains the main representative of the Russian delegation, as he has full authority and is in direct contact with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

"The position of the Russian side was as unwavering as during the first round of talks. But this time, the Ukrainian side responded just as firmly. And this is the main difference. [Ukraine’s First Deputy Foreign Minister Serhii] Kyslytsia was one of those who outlined all of the [Russian] positions with which our side [Ukraine] disagreed," the source concluded.

Background:

• The meeting between the delegations of Ukraine and the Russian Federation, which lasted a little over an hour, was the second following the talks on 16 May.
• At the meeting in Istanbul on Monday 2 June, the Ukrainian and Russian delegations reached an agreement on the next prisoner exchange, which will involve seriously wounded and young soldiers.
• Vladimir Medinsky, the head of the Russian delegation, has said that Russia is offering Kyiv a temporary ceasefire on certain fronts.
• Axios has learned from a Ukrainian official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, that the so-called "memorandum" containing proposals for a ceasefire and an end to the war, which Russia handed over to Ukraine on 2 June, also contains ultimatums regarding the recognition of the Russian occupation of Ukrainian territories.

Previously:

• On 1 June 2025, the Security Service of Ukraine carried out a special operation codenamed Pavutyna (Spider’s Web), one of the largest and most complex sabotage operations against Russian military aviation.
• The Security Service of Ukraine reported that the operation resulted in the destruction of 41 Russian strategic aircraft, including Tu-95, Tu-22M3 and Tu-160 strategic bombers, as well as an A-50 long-range radar detection aircraft.
• After the Ukrainian Security Service’s Operation Pavutyna, EU Ambassador to Kyiv Katarína Mathernová stated that Ukraine has its own cards to play in the war.
• Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, commenting on the Ukrainian attack that destroyed and damaged Russian strategic bombers, said that Ukraine is successfully defending itself.

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