Russian financial markets are paying the price today as growing evidence suggests that President Vladimir Putin’s latest overture toward peace is little more than a calculated distraction. The Moscow Exchange Index (MOEX) dropped sharply— falling more than 3.3% by midafternoon— after the Kremlin confirmed that Putin would not attend talks in Istanbul, despite widespread speculation about a high-level breakthrough.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky accepted what the Kremlin had initially floated: a one-on-one summit with Vladimir Putin in Istanbul on May 15. The proposal, quietly circulated by Russian officials, was meant to shift the image of Moscow as open to peace. But when Zelensky publicly agreed to the meeting, the Kremlin immediately recoiled— exposing the offer as empty theater.