"All the work necessary to finalize these memorandums is part of preparing for the meeting," Peskov stated. "Without completing this difficult groundwork, setting specific dates for a summit makes little sense," the Kremlin spokesman stated, TASS reported.
He added that otherwise, "this rough, very complex, and extensive work would have to be done at the highest level."
In remarks about the agenda for the third round of direct Russian-Ukrainian talks set for this evening in Istanbul, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has repeatedly stressed that the priority should be arranging a summit.
The Kremlin, however, continues to insist that both sides must first reach agreement on a memorandum detailing the peace process. Draft versions of the document were exchanged during the second round of talks, also held in Istanbul.