Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday proposed direct talks with Ukrainian officers to lastly deliver an finish to the warfare that started with a 2022 invasion by Moscow.
Putin has to this point supplied few, if any, concessions however is now proposing talks with Ukraine within the Turkish metropolis of Istanbul that he says should be held with out preconditions and with the objective of lasting peace.
“We’re proposing that Kyiv resume direct negotiations with none preconditions,” Putin mentioned in a televised assertion on Sunday. “We provide the Kyiv authorities to renew negotiations already on Thursday, in Istanbul.”
The Kremlin chief mentioned talks ought to deal with the basis causes of the warfare and that he would communicate to Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan in a while Sunday about facilitating the negotiations, which he mentioned might end in a ceasefire.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin provides an announcement to the media on the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Could 11, 2025. (Reuters)
“Our proposal, as they are saying, is on the desk,” Putin mentioned. “The choice is now as much as the Ukrainian authorities and their curators, who’re guided, it appears, by their private political ambitions, and never by the pursuits of their peoples.”
The proposal was a welcome signal to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who mentioned Kyiv was prepared to barter however that Moscow should conform to a ceasefire.
“It’s a constructive signal that the Russians have lastly begun to contemplate ending the warfare,” he wrote on X. “The whole world has been ready for this for a really very long time. And the very first step in really ending any warfare is a ceasefire. There is no such thing as a level in persevering with the killing even for a single day. We count on Russia to substantiate a ceasefire – full, lasting, and dependable – beginning tomorrow, Could twelfth, and Ukraine is able to meet.”
U.S. President Donald Trump mentioned a whole lot of 1000’s of lives shall be saved if the “massacre” of the warfare might finish.
“A probably nice day for Russia and Ukraine!” Trump wrote on Reality Social. “Consider the a whole lot of 1000’s of lives that shall be saved as this by no means ending ‘massacre’ hopefully involves an finish. It will likely be an entire new, and a lot better, WORLD. I’ll proceed to work with each side to ensure that it occurs. The USA needs to focus, as a substitute, on Rebuilding and Commerce. A BIG week upcoming!”
Putin’s proposal for direct talks got here hours after European leaders demanded on Saturday in Kyiv that the Russian president conform to an unconditional 30-day ceasefire or face new sanctions. However Putin dismissed makes an attempt by some European powers to problem what he described as “ultimatums.”
The Russian chief mentioned he doesn’t rule out that Moscow and Kyiv will agree on “some new truces, a brand new ceasefire” throughout negotiations in Turkey, saying that the talks could be step one in the direction of a “sustainable” peace.
Russian President Vladimir Putin provides an announcement to the media on the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Could 11, 2025. (Reuters)
Russia had proposed a number of ceasefires, together with a moratorium on placing vitality services, an Easter ceasefire and most just lately the 72-hour truce throughout the celebrations marking 80 years since victory in World Battle Two, Putin mentioned.
Putin mentioned that throughout the ceasefire in Could, Ukraine attacked Russia with 524 aerial drones, 45 sea drones, and a number of other Western missiles. However Ukraine accused Russia of violating the momentary truces, together with the Could 8-10 ceasefire.
Regardless of Putin’s supply of peace talks, Russia launched a drone assault on Kyiv and different components of Ukraine on Sunday, injuring one particular person and damaging a number of personal houses, Ukrainian officers mentioned.
Putin has maintained his situations for ending the warfare regardless of stress from Trump and warnings from European leaders.
In June, he mentioned Ukraine should formally drop its hopes of becoming a member of NATO and pull its troops from the whole lot of the territory of 4 Ukrainian areas claimed by Russia. Moscow has additionally urged the U.S. to acknowledge Russia’s management over components of Ukraine.
However Russian officers have mentioned they don’t seem to be in opposition to Kyiv’s ambitions to affix the European Union.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy mentioned Kyiv was prepared to barter however that Moscow should conform to a ceasefire. (Getty Pictures)
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Putin talked about the 2022 draft deal Russia and Ukraine negotiated shortly after the Russian invasion began.
Beneath that draft, Ukraine ought to conform to everlasting neutrality in alternate for worldwide safety ensures from the 5 everlasting members of the U.N. Safety Council: Britain, China, France, Russia and the U.S.
“It was not Russia that broke off negotiations in 2022. It was Kyiv,” Putin mentioned. “Russia is able to negotiate with none preconditions.”
Putin thanked China, Brazil, African and Center Jap international locations and the U.S. for his or her efforts to mediate.
Reuters contributed to this report.
