Çavuşoğlu says Kyiv and Moscow reached a "consensus" in Istanbul talks

Peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have made their most meaningful progress so far, Turkey's foreign minister said on Tuesday after Moscow announced it would scale back its military operations near Kyiv.

Mevlut Cavusoglu said negotiators in Istanbul had reached a "consensus and common understanding" on some of the issues between the warring countries.

It came as Ukraine offered concessions to Russia, including staying out of Nato and keeping foreign military bases off its territory, in exchange for guarantees from allies to protect it from foreign aggression.

Mr Cavusoglu said Tuesday's negotiations would be followed by talks between the Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers, and possibly the two presidents Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, to discuss the "more difficult" outstanding issues. Ukraine said these could include discussions on the future of the Crimean peninsula, which was annexed by Russia in 2014.

Stocks jumped and oil prices fell on the signs of optimism emerging from the talks, in which Ukraine is seeking a ceasefire and the withdrawal of Russian troops. But there is wariness among its allies about Moscow's intentions after what they describe as broken promises by Mr Putin in the past.

"Whatever agreement there is, it is made at gunpoint," Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said.

The meeting at Istanbul's Dolmabahce Palace was the first face-to-face encounter between the two sides for almost three weeks, during which Russia's invasion was seen as having stalled.

Ukraine said it was carrying out successful counter-attacks in some areas but being pounded by Russian attacks on fuel storage sites, while Moscow said it had succeeded in diminishing the Ukrainian armed forces and would now focus on areas claimed by separatists in the eastern Donbas region.

Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin said the promise to scale back fighting around Kyiv was meant to create mutual trust and the necessary conditions for more talks to take place.

The two sides were urged by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who was hosting the talks, to pave the way for a Putin-Zelenskiy meeting that could "stop this tragedy" after almost five weeks of war.

“In a fair peace, there are no losing parties and the extension of conflict is to nobody's benefit," said Mr Erdogan. “The whole world is waiting on good news to come out of your negotiations,” Mr Erdogan said.