The Ukrainian leader, whose presidential term expired last year, is trying to legitimize himself, the ex-Russian president has claimed

Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky suggested holding a three-way meeting with US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in a bid to gain some legitimacy as a leader, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has claimed.

Zelensky, whose presidential term expired more than a year ago, has repeatedly cited martial law as a pretext for refusing to hold a new election. The Kremlin argues that he is now "illegitimate" as a leader.

In a post on his Telegram channel on Friday, Medvedev, who currently serves as deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, wrote that the reason why Zelensky wants a meeting with both Trump and Putin at the same time is "obvious enough."

"A three-way conversation means [he] can get a massive legitimacy boost by latching onto the clout of those at the table," the Russian official claimed. Medvedev also surmised that Zelensky could capitalize on such a meeting domestically, using it as a pretext to put off elections further and to convince Ukrainian elites that "now is not the time to change horses in midstream."

On Tuesday, Zelensky stated that "we are ready for the 'Trump, Putin, and me' format, and we are ready for the Trump-Putin, Trump-Zelensky format, and then the three of us."

According to Zelensky, while several venues for the potential summit were being considered, Türkiye was the "most realistic option."

The following day, Trump said he was prepared for a trilateral meeting with Zelensky and Putin "if it's necessary."

Speaking during his visit to Kiev on Friday, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said that he believes "it is possible to cap the first and second direct Istanbul talks with a meeting between Mr. Trump, Mr. Putin, and Mr. Zelensky, under the direction of [Turkish President Recep Tayyip] Erdogan."

Also on Friday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov clarified that Putin is open to holding high-level direct talks with Kiev. However, he said these should be preceded by concrete progress being made in the negotiations between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations.

The representatives of Moscow and Kiev last met in Istanbul on May 16, marking their first formal negotiations since 2022.

On Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov proposed holding the next round of direct discussions on June 2, also in Istanbul.

(RT.com)