Maria Zaharova and Sergei Lavrov attacked Ukrainian President Zelenski, calling him a "clown" and "pathetic" in the context of the peace talks

In a press conference, Maria Zaharova insulted Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski, calling him a "clown" and a "loser", in response to his criticism of the Russian delegation to the peace talks in Turkey. Sergei Lavrov also labeled Zelensky "pathetic" for calling on Russian President Vladimir Putin to attend the talks in person. These comments came ahead of a meeting between Zelenski and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.