Monday, May 12, 2025 - Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky says he is prepared to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin “personally” in Istanbul on Thursday, May 15, for direct talks aimed at ending the war.
His announcement came shortly after former U.S. President
Donald Trump urged Ukraine to accept Putin’s proposal for talks in Turkey.
“There is no
point in prolonging the killings. And I will be waiting for Putin in Türkiye on
Thursday. Personally,” Zelensky wrote in a post
Zelensky had previously stated that Ukraine was open to
negotiations with Russia, but only after a ceasefire was implemented.
Western powers have called for a 30-day pause in fighting
beginning Monday. The appeal followed a summit in Kyiv involving European
leaders from the so-called “coalition of the willing.”
Putin extended the offer for direct talks after the summit.
Trump then posted on social media, saying Ukraine should agree “immediately” to
the meeting, adding it would clarify whether a peace deal is achievable. “Have
the meeting, now!” he urged.
Zelensky responded by expressing hope that Russia would
first agree to a ceasefire. “We await a full and lasting ceasefire, starting
from tomorrow, to provide the necessary basis for diplomacy,” he said.
In a Saturday night address, Putin called on Ukraine to join
“serious negotiations” over the conflict, which began with Russia’s full-scale
invasion in 2022. He suggested the talks could lead to a new truce but did not
directly address the call for a 30-day ceasefire.
“This would
be the first step towards a long-term, lasting peace, rather than a prologue to
more armed hostilities,” Putin said, warning against renewed Ukrainian
mobilization and Western military aid.
Russia has repeatedly insisted that any ceasefire must be
preceded by a halt to Western military support for Ukraine.
On Saturday, Zelensky hosted leaders including UK Prime
Minister Keir Starmer, France’s Emmanuel Macron, Germany’s Friedrich Merz, and
Poland’s Donald Tusk in Kyiv. After the meeting, the leaders spoke with Trump
to discuss the ceasefire proposal.
Speaking to the BBC, Starmer said the U.S. president viewed
the proposed ceasefire as a “demand that must be met.”
At a joint news conference with Zelensky, the leaders warned
that “new and massive” sanctions would be imposed on Russia’s energy and
banking sectors if Putin rejected the unconditional ceasefire—covering air,
sea, and land.
The last direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine took
place in Istanbul in March 2022, shortly after the invasion began. While both
sides now appear willing to return to talks in principle, meaningful progress
remains uncertain, as their positions remain deeply divided.
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