Istanbul — it’s where Asia meets Europe, but as we now know, not where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin. The world's media descended on the Turkish city on May 15,

Rubio said the low level of the Russian delegation likely meant there would be no major breakthroughs for the first direct talks between the two sides in years.

The first direct peace talks between Ukraine and Russian in three years due to get underway in Turkey on Thursday were thrown into doubt in a dispute over the seniority of their respective delegations.