Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed restarting direct negotiations with Ukraine in Istanbul on May 15, offering a counterpoint to a recent appeal by Kyiv and its European allies for an immediate, unconditional 30-day ceasefire starting Monday.
Speaking from the Kremlin early Sunday, Putin did not directly respond to the ceasefire proposal, which had been jointly issued by Ukraine, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Poland during a summit in Kyiv.
Instead, he outlined his own offer to resume talks, which he claimed Ukraine had abandoned in 2022.
“We are ready to restart negotiations with the Ukrainian leadership, without preconditions,” Putin said, urging a revival of talks that initially began in Istanbul during the early stages of the war but ultimately collapsed without resolution.
Putin emphasised that Russia remains open to “serious dialogue” aimed at addressing what he called the “root causes” of the conflict and building a foundation for lasting peace.
These “causes,” as framed by the Kremlin, include Russia’s longstanding objections to NATO expansion, the status of Russian-speaking populations in eastern Ukraine, and Ukraine’s pivot toward Western alliances—grievances rejected outright by Kyiv and its allies as pretexts for an unprovoked invasion.
The conflict, now into its third year, has led to tens of thousands of deaths and displaced millions of civilians across Ukraine.
Despite mounting international pressure, including threats of new sanctions and increased military aid to Ukraine, Russia has so far not agreed to the proposed ceasefire.
Putin said he intends to discuss the matter with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, whose country previously hosted Russia-Ukraine negotiations.
While the Russian leader signalled openness to discussing a new ceasefire arrangement during future talks, he criticized what he called “ultimatums” from Western nations and accused NATO countries of seeking to prolong hostilities.
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Earlier, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed to CNN that Moscow would review the ceasefire proposal, but no official decision has been announced.
Russia’s self-declared three-day ceasefire—introduced to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II—ended Saturday.
Ukraine reported multiple violations of the truce by Russian forces.
