Secret meeting on ending Ukraine war held in Baku, Azerbaijan's president says

Who attended the meeting in Baku? A secret meeting between former senior German and Russian officials took place in Baku this month, where participants discussed possible ways to end Russia’s war against Ukraine, Bloomberg reports.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev disclosed the talks during a joint press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Berlin. According to Aliyev, Azerbaijan’s territory was used to host the meeting without the knowledge of the country’s authorities.

"Our territory was used for such a meeting without our knowledge," Aliyev said.

The Azerbaijani president added that he could not comment on the substance of the discussions because no Azerbaijani representatives attended the meeting.

"I cannot comment on the details, as we were not present at the meeting. However, the flight data allows me to state that a secret meeting did take place in Baku," he said.

According to Bloomberg, the unofficial German delegation included Ronald Pofalla, former chief of staff to Chancellor Angela Merkel, and Matthias Platzeck, the former state leader of Brandenburg.

The Russian delegation reportedly included Valery Fadeyev, head of Russia’s Presidential Council for Civil Society and Human Rights, and Viktor Zubkov, chairman of Gazprom’s board and a former Russian deputy prime minister.

Aliyev said the talks were held from July 12 to July 14. He added that if their purpose was to help bring an end to the war between Russia and Ukraine, such an initiative could only be welcomed.

"If this meeting was intended to contribute to ending the war between Russia and Ukraine, we can only welcome that," the Azerbaijani president said.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, however, said his government had no involvement in the talks.

"I’m not aware of any such meeting," Merz told reporters.

Earlier this month, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is ready for a face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

According to Sybiha, Kyiv has concrete proposals for ending the war, and Türkiye could serve as the venue for such negotiations.