In the end, Vladimir Putin did not go to Istanbul for the one-on-one on offer. Instead, in what critics call a worse snub than an empty chair, the Russian president dispatched his former culture minister, a "greater Russia" ideologue, for the first face-to-face meeting with Ukraine since 2022. What's the Trump administration's next move after pushing so hard for talks?

We know Zelensky's next move: travelling to Ankara instead of Istanbul, where the Ukrainian president met his Turkish counterpart. Turkey's star power is on the rise, with its influence unseating that of Moscow in neighbouring Syria and Trump heaping praise on a fellow NATO ally whose role as Black Sea arbiter and arms exporter could prove crucial.

Then there's Ukraine's European allies, who are talking tougher on sanctions and nuclear deterrence. Part of that is about Putin; part of it about Trump. French President Emmanuel Macron also this week spoke of territorial concessions. The idea is that the time for talks is indeed approaching. If so, do Paris, London, Berlin, Warsaw and friends have a plan?

Produced by François Picard, Rebecca Gnignati, Juliette Laffont, Annarosa Zampaglione, Alessandro Xenos.