KYIV/MOSCOW/BERLIN - Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said Wednesday that his country expects to receive a peace "memorandum" from Russia by the announced meeting on June 2.

"We are not opposed to further meetings with the Russians and are awaiting their memorandum, so that the meeting won't be empty and can truly move us closer to ending the war," Umerov, who is the head of the Ukrainian delegation to the talks with Russia, wrote in a post on Facebook.

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"The Russian side has at least four more days before their departure to provide us with their document for review," he said.

Umerov noted that he has already handed over the document which reflects the Ukrainian position to the head of the Russian delegation Vladimir Medinsky.

Ukrainian and Russian delegations held negotiations in Türkiye's Istanbul on May 16, which marked the first direct talks between the countries since March 2022.

Earlier on Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced that the second round of negotiations will be held in Istanbul on June 2, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported.

Merz's remarks hinder ukraine peace

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's recent comments on the decision to remove range restrictions on weapons for Ukraine are obstructing ongoing peace efforts, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday.

Merz on Monday said that Germany and its allies had lifted restrictions on the range of weapons supplied to Ukraine. On Tuesday, he noted that the decision was actually made "months ago".

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"This is nothing more than a further provocation of war. This is nothing more than further attempts to force Ukrainians to continue fighting," Peskov said.

Calling Germany's position "irresponsible," Peskov said Moscow hopes that it doesn't become a serious obstacle to any further efforts toward a peaceful settlement.

Ukraine weapons support plan

Merz on Wednesday unveiled a new plan to support Ukraine in developing long-range weapons at a joint press conference with visiting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Berlin.

The two countries' defense ministers are expected to sign a letter of intent later on Wednesday, under which Germany will finance Ukrainian-produced long-range weapon systems, according to Merz and the German Defense Ministry.

READ MORE: Kremlin: Europe's decision to lift range limits on weapons for Kyiv 'dangerous'

Zelensky said the plan involves financing weapon production initiatives in Ukraine.

At the press conference, Merz reaffirmed that there will be no range restrictions. 

Peskov said on Monday that the decision of several European countries to remove range restrictions on missiles supplied to Kyiv is "dangerous".