By HANNA ARHIROVA and ANDREW WILKS, Associated Press

ISTANBUL, Turkey (AP) — Russia and Ukraine held their first direct peace talks in three years Friday, gathering in Istanbul for Turkish-brokered negotiations, but officials and observers expected them to yield little immediate progress on stopping the more than three-year war.

A Ukrainian delegation led by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov sat down with a low-level Russian team headed by presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, according to Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi, who published a photo of the meeting.

The officials present sat around a U-shaped table, with the Russians and Ukrainians facing each other.

A senior Ukrainian official close to the talks said that Kyiv’s delegation was prepared to “achieve a lot today” and with a real mandate to resolve key issues. The official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to make official statements, said the outcome hinges on whether Moscow is equally serious.

Both countries have tried to persuade U.S. President Donald Trump, who has expressed frustration over the slow progress and threatened to punish foot-dragging, that they are eager to resolve the conflict amid extensive diplomatic maneuvering.

The latest push to end the fighting got off to a rocky start on Thursday, when Russian President Vladimir Putin spurned an offer by Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy to meet face-to-face. Delegations from the two countries also flew to different Turkish cities and put together teams of significantly different diplomatic heft for possible talks.

Although expectations for a possible Putin-Zelenskyy meeting were low, the apparent lack of traction in peace efforts frustrated hopes of bold steps being taken in Turkey toward reaching a settlement.

The two sides remain far part

The two sides are far apart in their conditions for ending the war, and Trump said Thursday during a trip to the Middle East that a meeting between himself and Putin was crucial to breaking the deadlock.

On Friday, Trump said a meeting with Putin would happen “as soon as we can set it up.”

“I think it’s time for us to just do it,” Trump told reporters in Abu Dhabi.

Comments Friday by Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov appeared to indicate that momentum for a summit is building, as Peskov told reporters top-level talks were “certainly needed.” But he noted that preparing a summit would take time.

Ukraine has accepted a U.S. and European proposal for a full, 30-day ceasefire, but Putin has effectively rejected it by imposing far-reaching conditions.

Meantime, Russian forces are preparing a fresh military offensive, Ukrainian government and Western military analysts say.

Russia’s invasion has killed more than 12,000 Ukrainian civilians, the U.N. says, and razed towns and villages. Tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers have died, and likely a larger number of Russian troops, officials and analysts say.

On the battlefield, one Ukrainian soldier said he wasn’t hopeful that the talks would bring a swift end to the war.

“I don’t think they will agree on anything concrete, because summer is the best time for war,” he said, using only the call sign “Corsair,” in keeping with the rules of the Ukrainian military. “The enemy is trying to constantly escalate the situation.”

But he told The Associated Press that many of his fellow soldiers “believe that by the end of the year there will be peace, albeit an unstable one, but peace.”

A Friday morning drone attack on the northeastern Ukrainian city of Kupiansk killed a 55-year-old woman and wounded four men, Oleh Syniehubov, head of the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration, said. All the victims worked for a municipal utility.

After Putin didn’t take up Zelenskyy’s challenge to sit down with him in the Turkish capital on Thursday, the Ukrainian president accused Moscow of not making a serious effort to end the war by sending a low-level negotiating team that he described as “a theater prop.”

Even so, Zelenskyy said that he was sending a team headed by his defense minister to Friday’s meeting in Istanbul. That would show Trump that Ukraine is determined to press ahead with peace efforts despite Russian foot-dragging, Zelenskyy said, amid intense diplomatic maneuvering by Kyiv and Moscow.

The Russian delegation also includes three other senior officials, the Kremlin said. Putin also appointed four lower-level officials as “experts” for the talks.

A flurry of diplomatic activity in Istanbul

A flurry of diplomatic activity took place in Istanbul before the talks.

Ukrainian officials held an early-morning meeting with national security advisers from the United States, France, Germany and the United Kingdom to coordinate positions, a senior Ukrainian official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

The U.S. team was led by retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, while Umerov and presidential office chief Andriy Yermak represented Ukraine, the official said.

In this handout photo released by Turkish Foreign Ministry, from left, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Ukrainian Head of Presidential Office Andriy Yermak arrive for a meeting at Dolmabahce palace in Istanbul, Turkey, Friday, May 16, 2025. (Turkish Foreign Ministry via AP)

A three-way meeting between Turkey, the U.S. and Ukraine also took place, Turkish Foreign Ministry officials said. The U.S. side included Secretary of State Marco Rubio as well as Kellogg.

Rubio on Thursday said he didn’t foresee major developments in Istanbul.

“We don’t have high expectations of what will happen tomorrow. And frankly, at this point, I think it’s abundantly clear that the only way we’re going to have a breakthrough here is between President Trump and President Putin,” Rubio told reporters Thursday in Antalya, Turkey.

Zelenskyy, meantime, flew to Albania to attend a meeting Friday of the leaders of 47 European countries to discuss security, defense and democratic standards against the backdrop of the war.

Associated Press writer Aamer Madhani in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report.

Today is Friday, May 16, the 136th day of 2025. There are 229 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On May 16, 1966, the Chinese Communist Party issued the May 16 Notification, a document that criticized “counterrevolutionary revisionists” within the party and marked the beginning of the Cultural Revolution.

Also on this date:

In 1770, Marie Antoinette, age 14, married the future King Louis XVI of France, who was 15.

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In 1868, having already been impeached by the House of Representatives, President Andrew Johnson narrowly avoided impeachment by the Senate, which voted 35-19 in favor of impeachment—one vote shy of the required two-thirds majority.

In 1929, the first Academy Awards were presented. “Wings” won the award for Outstanding Picture, while Emil Jannings and Janet Gaynor were named Best Actor and Best Actress.

In 1943, the nearly monthlong Warsaw Ghetto Uprising came to an end as German forces crushed the Jewish resistance and blew up the city’s Great Synagogue.

In 1960, the first working laser was demonstrated at Hughes Research Laboratories in Malibu, California, by physicist Theodore Maiman.

In 1975, Japanese climber Junko Tabei became the first woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest.

In 1997, President Bill Clinton publicly apologized for the notorious 40-year Tuskegee Experiment, in which government scientists deliberately allowed Black men to weaken and die of treatable syphilis.

In 2018, officials at Michigan State University said they had agreed to pay $500 million to settle claims from more than 300 women and girls who said they were assaulted by sports doctor Larry Nassar.

In 2022, the U.S. death toll from COVID-19 reached 1 million.

Today’s Birthdays:

Actor Danny Trejo is 81.
Actor Pierce Brosnan is 72.
Olympic gymnastics gold medalist Olga Korbut is 70.
Baseball Hall of Famer Jack Morris is 70.
Actor Debra Winger is 70.
Olympic marathon gold medalist Joan Benoit Samuelson is 68.
Actor Mare Winningham is 66.
Rock musician Krist Novoselic (Nirvana) is 60.
Singer Janet Jackson is 59.
Football Hall of Famer Thurman Thomas is 59.
Singer Ralph Tresvant (New Edition) is 57.
Actor David Boreanaz is 56.
Political commentator Tucker Carlson is 56.
Tennis Hall of Famer Gabriela Sabatini is 55.
Actor Tori Spelling is 52.
Actor Melanie Lynskey is 48.
Actor Megan Fox is 39.
Actor Thomas Brodie-Sangster is 35.

The Lynx play Dallas on Friday at 6:30 p.m. on ION.

There’s a lot of excitement and buzz around the WNBA as its set to tip off its 29th season Friday night thanks in large part to last season’s rookie class led by Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese.

The league may have its most anticipated year ahead with the two second year players leading the way. The duo, who helped the league to record ratings and attendance. Their two teams — the Indiana Fever and Chicago Sky — will face each other Saturday for the first of five matchups this season.

The league is coming off a thrilling finals that saw the New York Liberty beat the Minnesota Lynx in a decisive Game 5. Both teams are poised to try and get back to the championship round which will now be a best-of-7 format for the first time this year. Standing in their way could be the Las Vegas Aces, who won the title in back-to-back years in 2022-23.

Clark’s Fever made a huge splash in the offseason, bolstering their roster with the additions of DeWanna Bonner, Natasha Howard and Sophie Cunningham. They also added a new coach in former Fever leader Stephanie White.

One of the teams playing Friday night will be the expansion Golden State Valkyries, who are the first expansion team in the league since the Atlanta Dream joined in 2008. With the new squad, the league expanded its schedule to 44 games this year.

Here are a few other things to look for this upcoming season:

Promoting respect online and at games

The WNBA launched “No Space for Hate”, a multi-dimensional platform designed to combat hate and promote respect across all WNBA spaces both online and in-arena.

The league is focused on four key areas: enhanced technological features to detect hateful comments online; increased emphasis on team, arena, and league security measures; reinforcing mental health resources; and alignment of core against hate.

“As the WNBA continues to grow in popularity and influence, we’re proud to launch ‘No Space for Hate’ — a league-wide initiative to better protect players, preserve the spirit of the game, and affirm the values of our league,” said WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert. “We want our arenas, and our social platforms filled with energy and fandom — not hate and vitriol.”

Staying put this summer

Several European players have said publicly that they will forego playing in the Eurobasket this summer, opting to stay and play in the WNBA during that tournament. Seattle’s Gabby Williams and Dominique Malonga said they won’t play for France at the tournament. Fellow French star Carla Leite also has decided to stay with the Valkyries. The Eurobasket, which starts late next month, is a qualifier for next year’s FIBA World Cup that will be played in Germany. The WNBA allows players to go compete for their national teams in major tournaments like the Eurobasket without it violating the league’s prioritization rules.

Predictions for the season

The Liberty, Lynx and Aces are the top three teams with Indiana right behind as chosen by a 15-member national media panel that does a weekly power poll. The group also chose Minnesota star Napheesa Collier as its preseason MVP and Paige Bueckers of Hopkins as the top candidate for Rookie of the Year.

Rookie class impressing

Bueckers is one of 19 rookies to make opening day rosters in the WNBA, six more than last season. That includes two third round picks — JJ Quinerly (Dallas) and Taylor Thierry (Atlanta). Bueckers, the No. 1 pick in the draft, will try and help revitalize the Dallas franchise. She was the most efficient player in college on the offensive end and capped off her career helping UConn win its 12th national championship.

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A federal judge has ordered the immediate release of Aditya Harsono, the 34-year-old Marshall, Minn., man who was detained by immigration authorities in late March for allegedly overstaying his student visa.

“The Court finds that Mr. H has shown that he is in custody in violation of the First Amendment,” Judge Katherine Menendez’s order reads, “and is entitled to a writ of habeas corpus for his immediate release.”

Menendez also ordered that Harsono be released within 48 hours. Harsono’s attorney, Sarah Gad, said her client’s family posted the $5,000 bond.

Aditya Harsono, left, stands next to his wife, Peyton Harsono, who holds their infant daughter Adalet. The 33-year-old Marshall, Minn. man was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement days after his student F-1 visa was revoked on March 23, 2025. Harsono is currently being held at the Kandiyohi County Jail in Willmar, Minn. (Courtesy of Peyton Harsono)

“The federal judge agreed with us — me and my co-counsel — that his detention was unlawful in order that he’d be released,” Gad said. “So, we’re trying to get everything in gear to make that happen as soon as possible.”

Harsono petitioned for his release, stating his detainment was unconstitutional.

Harsono, who came to the United States from Indonesia, told MPR News he believed his arrest was in retaliation for his participation in protests after the 2021 police killing of Daunte Wright in Minneapolis.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers arrested Harsono in March at his job at a Marshall hospital, days after his student visa was revoked without his knowledge. He has been in custody for nearly two months at the Kandiyohi County Jail in southwestern Minnesota.

Gad stated that Harsono’s I-130 form that was expedited had been approved last Friday. The I-130 form is used to petition for a green card by U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents for those wishing to immigrate and is considered the first step in the process for many family-based green card applications.

“I’m just so grateful for my co-counsel,” Gad said. “We’ve been working day and night on this federal habeas petition and our reply brief, and just like … it’s incredibly rewarding and I’m just, I’m so happy for them.”

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