Ukraine to Join Peace Talks Pending Russia's Agreement to Truce

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Key Points

Leaders from France, Germany, Britain, and Poland gathered in Kyiv to show symbolic support for Ukraine.
This group, along with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, urged Russia to agree to a 30-day ceasefire.
Vladimir Putin dismissed the ceasefire demand, proposing direct peace negotiations with Ukraine instead.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed his willingness to meet Vladimir Putin in Türkiye following US President Donald Trump’s suggestion that he accept the Kremlin leader’s proposal for direct discussions.

Zelenskyy’s proposal came after a tense 48-hour period during which European leaders rallied with Zelenskyy to demand a 30-day ceasefire starting Monday, which was countered by Putin’s proposal for direct Ukraine-Russia talks, the first since early 2022.

The possibility of Putin’s personal attendance was unclear, as he and Zelenskyy have not met since December 2019 and openly express their disdain for one another.

“I will be waiting for Putin in Türkiye on Thursday. Personally,” Zelenskyy announced on X. “I hope this time the Russians will not find excuses.”

On Telegram, Andriy Yermak, his chief of staff, commented: “What about Putin? Is he afraid? We’ll see.”

Zelenskyy had responded guardedly earlier on Sunday after Putin, in a night-time televised statement that coincided with prime time in the US, proposed direct talks in Istanbul on 15 May.

Putin’s proposal followed the demand from major European powers in Kyiv for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire, warning of “massive” new sanctions otherwise, a stance supported by Trump’s Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg.

Trump demands talks begin

Zelenskyy, too, had said Ukraine was ready for talks if Russia agreed to the 30-day ceasefire.

Yet Trump, who has the power to continue or sever the US’s crucial supply of arms to Ukraine, took a different line.

“President Putin of Russia doesn’t want to have a ceasefire agreement with Ukraine, but rather wants to meet on Thursday, in Turkey, to negotiate a possible end to the BLOODBATH. Ukraine should agree to this, IMMEDIATELY,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“At least they will determine whether a deal is possible or not, and if not, European leaders and the US will know where things stand to proceed accordingly!”

Five men in suits are seated on chairs. A phone on the desk in front of them is on speakerphone, and they are listening.

(Left to right) UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, French President Emmanuel Macron, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz had a call with US President Donald Trump on Saturday. Source: AAP / AP / Mstyslav Chernov

Russia and Ukraine have both courted Trump.

Ukraine is desperate to unlock more of the US military backing it received from Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden. Russia senses an opportunity to get relief from a barrage of economic sanctions and engage with the world’s biggest economy.

Putin sent Russia’s armed forces into Ukraine in February 2022, unleashing a conflict that has killed hundreds of thousands of soldiers and triggered the gravest confrontation between Russia and the West since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.

But with Russian forces grinding forward, Putin has offered few, if any, concessions so far.

In his overnight address, he proposed what he said would be “direct negotiations without any preconditions”.

Easter, but no change on the frontlines in Ukraine image

But almost immediately, senior Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters the talks must take into account both an abandoned 2022 draft peace framework and the situation on the ground.

This language is shorthand for Ukraine agreeing to permanent neutrality in return for a security guarantee and accepting Russia controls swathes of Ukraine.

Ukraine says agreeing to the terms of the 2022 draft would be tantamount to surrender.

Though Russia did not commit to it, Zelenskyy said Ukraine’s ceasefire plan for Monday still stood.

“We await a full and lasting ceasefire, starting from tomorrow, to provide the necessary basis for diplomacy,” he wrote on X.

Speaking in his nightly address, Zelenskyy said he was still waiting for a response from the Russian side — and that Ukrainian forces would respond in kind if Russian troops did not observe a truce.

The US embassy in Kyiv issued a warning on Friday of a “potentially significant” Russian air attack in the coming days.

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