According to ISW’s May 31 report, the new decree authorizes Russia’s Ministry of Industry and Trade to remove the owners of defense enterprises that don’t meet state orders and replace them with appointed management companies.

Ukraine’s foreign minister on Friday accused Russia of stalling peace negotiations, saying that Moscow had yet to share a promised memorandum outlining its peace terms. He said Kyiv wanted to see that document before sending a delegation to a new round of talks Moscow had proposed for Monday in Istanbul.

With Russia saying its terms for peace must remain secret until the talks begin, Ukraine won’t confirm whether its delegation will even attend.

A bipartisan pair of US senators met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Friday and urged stronger sanctions against Russia, while uncertainty swirls over whether the next round of peace talks will move ahead in the coming days.

Washington reiterated its willingness to keep Kyiv’s bid to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization off the table, in line with Moscow’s demands.

Low-level delegations from Russia and Ukraine held their first direct peace talks in three years in Istanbul on May 16. The talks, which lasted two hours, brought no significant breakthrough, although both sides agreed to the largest prisoner exchange of the war. It was carried out last weekend and freed 1,000 captives on each side.

Türkiye is continuing preparations for a meeting between Ukraine and Russia in Istanbul. The talks are expected to take place next week, informs the Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held a phone call with President Rumen Radev of Bulgaria.

By Olena Harmash and Vlad Smilianets KYIV/DNIPRO, Ukraine (Reuters) -Mariupol natives Oleksandr and Liudmyla Lytvyn fled home three years ago during Russia's 86-day siege of the port city in southern Ukraine.