Russia and Ukraine are due to hold their first direct peace talks in three years Friday. They are expected to gather in Istanbul for Turkish-brokered negotiations but officials and observers expect them to yield little immediate progress on stopping the more than 3-year war.

Russian and Ukrainian negotiators will meet in Istanbul on Friday for their first peace talks in more than three years as both sides come under pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump to end Europe's deadliest conflict since World War Two.

After five days of confusion over Russian President Vladimir Putin’s proposal for direct talks with Ukraine, the day they were supposed to begin initially brought only more of the same: a seven-hour stakeout on the banks of the Bosphorus,