Volodymyr Zelensky boldly announced over the weekend he will be "waiting for Putin in Türkiye on Thursday". But as crunch talks on a ceasefire loom more than three years after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, one expert has ruled out permanent peace due to three obstacles.

Taking to X on Sunday evening, Ukrainian President wrote: "We await a full and lasting ceasefire, starting from tomorrow, to provide the necessary basis for diplomacy. There is no point in prolonging the killings. And I will be waiting for Putin in Türkiye on Thursday. Personally. I hope that this time the Russians will not look for excuses."

It came after Vladimir Putin seemed to reject a ceasefire proposal, instead calling for the resumption of negotiations with Ukraine in Istanbul on May 15. These, he said, should be "without preconditions". President Zelensky called this a "positive sign", saying earlier today: "The entire world has been waiting for this for a very long time." But he added: "The very first step in truly ending any war is a ceasefire."

His message followed a post on Truth Social by Mr Trump, published late Saturday night, in which the former US President said: “President Putin of Russia doesn’t want to have a Cease Fire Agreement with Ukraine, but rather wants to meet on Thursday, in Turkey, to negotiate a possible end to the BLOODBATH. Ukraine should agree to this, IMMEDIATELY."

According to the Financial Times, analysts claim three things stand in the way of genuine peace between Russia and Ukraine.

The first being a major shift in battle, whether that being in Russia or Ukraine's favour. That is anything from significant territory suddenly being gained or the admission that combat can no longer be sustained due to escalating casualties/limited arsenal.

Secondly, it's a matter of who's in charge pulling the strings and that certainly doesn't look like changing any time soon. Experts are convinced that for as long as Russia is dictated by warmongering Vladimir Putin, and Vlodymyr Zelensky is the president of Ukraine, there will be no budging on negotiating terms.

Donald Trump is the third variable, or rather his stance on the conflict. Unlike the above European leaders, the US President doesn't necessarily have to be replaced, just adopt a new stance on the war.

Last month, US President Donald Trump said he thinks Ukraine would be willing to give up Crimea as part of a peace deal with Russia. Trump said he believed Volodymyr Zelensky was willing to cede control of the Eastern European peninsula which was illegally annexed by Russia in 2014 to ensure peace in the region.

Responding to reporters who asked whether Zelensky was ready to "give up" the territory, the US leader replied: "Oh, I think so".

Yet his Ukrainian counterpart has adamantly refused such proposals in the past, countering that Crimea belongs to Ukraine and that he doesn't have the authority to legally recognise Vladimir Putin's occupation.

Continuing his response to Zelensky's statement yesterday, Trump wrote on Truth: “I’m starting to doubt that Ukraine will make a deal with Putin, who’s too busy celebrating the Victory of World War ll, which could not have been won (not even close!) without the United States of America. HAVE THE MEETING, NOW!!!”

Tatiana Stanovaya, founder of R.Politik, a Russian political consultancy, said: “The reality is that neither Moscow nor Kyiv is ready to agree to a durable peace, as their positions are fundamentally irreconcilable. No agreement is realistically possible now.”