During the negotiations between the Ukrainian and Russian delegations in Türkiye, efforts by the Kremlin to portray the meeting as a continuation of the Istanbul talks from three years ago were successfully neutralized.

She made the remarks during the European Political Community (EPC) summit in Albania. Von der Leyen noted that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin initially called for a three-day truce on May 9 but then failed to honor his call and later rejected a proposal for a 30‑day ceasefire.