ISTANBUL, July 31. /TASS/. Negotiations on the settlement of the Ukrainian conflict are still possible, but first and foremost, Europe must be convinced of the necessity of peace, Turkish international relations expert, Professor Canan Tercan of Istanbul Ayden University, told TASS.

"Negotiations are still possible, but for this it is necessary to convince European countries of the necessity of peace or of the advisability of replacing Vladimir Zelensky with a pro-peace figure in Ukraine," she said.

According to the expert, Turkey continues negotiations on the issue of resuming talks on its platform. "However, within NATO countries there are two camps: the first includes supporters of peace, the second derives benefit from the continuation of the war. While the administration of [US President] Donald Trump and Turkey are among the parties striving for peace, countries such as Germany, Great Britain and France, for various reasons - from the profits generated by the military economy to the desire to weaken Russia - prefer to continue the war and sabotage the peace process. Such a situation plays into Zelensky's hands and dooms Turkey's peace efforts to failure," Tercan said.

She recalled that Ankara, on the issue of settling the Ukrainian conflict, has from the very beginning kept communication channels open with Russia, Ukraine and NATO. "It fundamentally advocates a peaceful settlement and is making efforts in this direction. Thanks to the negotiations of Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Moscow (in June - TASS note) and diplomatic efforts at the NATO summit in Ankara on July 7-8, Turkey sought to bring the parties back to the negotiating table in Istanbul," the expert noted.

"Peace negotiations were requested by Zelensky himself back in 2025. Russia agreed to them, and Turkey acted as the organizer of the talks. However, Zelensky sabotaged the peace negotiations each time and, portraying himself as a victim, demanded additional assistance from the West," Tercan emphasized.

Last year, three rounds of direct Russian-Ukrainian negotiations took place in Istanbul. Turkish authorities have repeatedly expressed their readiness to once again provide their platform for negotiations and a summit on Ukraine.