President Trump has demanded that Ukraine should “immediately” agree to direct talks with Russia in a bid to end the war.
In a post on social media, Trump said: “President Putin of Russia doesn’t want to have a Cease Fire 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.
“At least they will be able to determine whether or not a deal is possible, and if it is not, European leaders, and the US will know where everything stands, and can proceed accordingly!”
Trump added: “I’m starting to doubt that Ukraine will make a deal with Putin, who’s too busy celebrating the Victory of World War II, which could not have been won (not even close!) without the United States of America. HAVE THE MEETING, NOW!!!”
It comes after President Zelensky said his team were “ready to meet” Russian representatives following Putin’s suggestion of peace talks, subject to an unconditional 30-day ceasefire starting on Monday.
“Everyone in the world has been waiting for this for a very long time,” Zelensky said in a social media post in response to the Russian leader’s televised statement on Saturday night.
“There is no point in continuing the killings even for a day. We expect Russia to confirm a ceasefire — complete, lasting and reliable — starting tomorrow, May 12, and Ukraine is ready to meet.”
Andriy Yermak, Zelensky’s chief of staff, said on Telegram that first there had to be a ceasefire, “then everything else”.
However, Putin has so far refused to bow to pressure from the US, UK and Europe to accept a 30-day ceasefire. During his latest comments, he suggested holding a new round of negotiations on May 15 in Istanbul but added there would be no preconditions on Russia’s part.
Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, said on Sunday that Putin was “very serious” in making comments which he said “confirms a real intention for finding a peaceful solution”.
“The goals of the talks are clear: to eliminate the root causes of the conflict, and also to ensure the interests of the Russian Federation,” Peskov added.
Peskov added that Ukraine remained beholden to its western “handlers”, who he claimed had forced Kyiv to pull out of peace negotiations three years ago, repeating a Russian claim which has been denied by Ukraine and its allies.
Yuri Ushakov, a Kremlin foreign policy adviser, said Russian proposals to end the war would pick up where those talks left off, taking into account the current situation on the ground.
Those talks, known as the “Istanbul Communique” began in Belarus before moving to Istanbul. Negotiations broke down in May 2022 after a draft agreement for settling the conflict was drawn up.
The draft agreed that Ukraine would accept permanent neutrality in return for international security guarantees from the five permanent members of the UN security council: Britain, China, France, Russia and the US.
There were also provisional deals on Ukraine remaining non-nuclear and relinquishing efforts to join Nato. Russia said it would not stand in the way of Ukrainian moves to join the EU. The draft plans also state that Kyiv would have to repeal laws that Moscow said discriminated against Russian speakers.
Putin said Russia did not rule out the possibility of a new ceasefire being agreed at the negotiations, but accused Ukraine of walking away from peace talks in the past and claimed that the talks should aim to “eliminate the root causes of the conflict and to establish a long-term, lasting peace”.
Putin’s comments came on the last day of a three-day ceasefire declared by Moscow and just hours after Sir Keir Starmer joined European leaders in urging Russia to accept an unconditional 30-day ceasefire this Monday in Ukraine, with “no more ifs and buts”.
Friedrich Merz, the German chancellor, said on Sunday: “Yesterday in Kyiv, we and our partners called for a 30-day ceasefire to create space for negotiations. Ukraine agreed to this without reservation. If the Russian side now signals a willingness to talk, that is initially a good sign. But it is far from sufficient. We expect Moscow to now agree to a ceasefire that can make real talks possible. First, the guns must fall silent before talks can begin.”
Donald Tusk, the Polish prime minister, added: “In response to our appeal, the Russians have proposed peace talks starting May 15. The world, however, іs waiting for unequivocal decision on an immediate and unconditional ceasefire. Ukraine is ready. No more victims!”
In an apparent response to Putin’s comments, President Trump said in a post on his TruthSocial platform early on Sunday that it was “a potentially great day for Russia and Ukraine!” He added: “Think of the hundreds of thousands of lives that will be saved as this never ending “bloodbath” hopefully comes to an end. It will be a whole new, and much better, WORLD. I will continue to work with both sides to make sure that it happens. The USA wants to focus, instead, on Rebuilding and Trade. A BIG week upcoming!”
However President Macron of France said Putin’s proposal was “a first step, but not enough” and claimed that the Russian leader was “looking for a way out, but he still wants to buy time”.
President Erdogan confirmed that Turkey was ready to host peace talks in Istanbul again, his office said, adding that he and Putin had spoken by phone Sunday.
Speaking with the apparent backing of Trump, the leaders warned Putin that they would step up sanctions and increase weapons deliveries to Ukraine if he refused to extend the three-day pause he called over the weekend to mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day.
Putin did not directly address the proposal in his remarks on Saturday night, though Peskov earlier said that Moscow would need to consider it.
Starmer paid an historic joint visit to Kyiv on Saturday with the leaders of France, Germany and Poland, hosted by Ukraine’s President Zelensky. They later held a virtual meeting with the heads of almost two dozen other European countries.
The Europeans’ call for a ceasefire was backed by Trump, with whom they had a “fruitful call” earlier on Saturday, Andrii Sybiha, Ukraine’s foreign minister, said in a post on X.
“All of us here, together with the US are calling Putin out,” Starmer told a joint news conference. “If he’s serious about peace, then he has a chance to show it now by extending the pause into a full, unconditional 30-day ceasefire.
“With negotiations to follow immediately once a ceasefire is agreed. No more ifs and buts, no more conditions and delays.”
If the Russian leader “turns his back on peace, we will respond”, Starmer added. “Working with President Trump, with all our partners, we’ll ramp up sanctions and increase military aid for Ukraine’s defence.”
In an interview earlier with America’s ABC television, Peskov said Russia supported the implementation of a 30-day ceasefire, but only if it were accompanied by an end to Western military assistance for Ukraine — which the leaders meeting in Kyiv rejected.
Dmitry Medvedev, the former Russian president, responded in characteristically vulgar manner, tweeting: “Macron, Merz, Starmer, and Tusk were supposed to discuss peace in Kiev. Instead, they are blurting out threats against Russia … Shove these peace plans up your pangender arses!”
It was the first time there had been a joint visit to Kyiv by the leaders of the four countries. Their unprecedented show of solidarity with Ukraine appeared to be timed as a response to Friday’s Victory Day parade in Red Square when Putin hosted China’s President Xi in Moscow and several other leaders of countries from Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Starmer arrived with Macron, Merz and Tusk in Kyiv in the early morning. As their train pulled into the station, the screen on the platform announced the arrival of the “Bravery Express”.
The four were then accompanied by President Zelensky as they visited the Memorial for the Fallen in Independence Square to pay tribute to those killed since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Russia, meanwhile, said it would require a halt to US and European arms supplies to Ukraine during any potential ceasefire. “Otherwise it will be an advantage for Ukraine. Ukraine will continue their total mobilisation, bringing new troops to (the) frontline,” Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, told ABC News.
The visit comes at an unpredictable diplomatic moment in the war, with Trump pushing for a rapid peace after tearing up the policies of his predecessor, Joe Biden, since entering the White House in January.
Trump held another call with Zelensky this week after his meeting with the Ukrainian leader at the funeral of Pope Francis earlier this month. After the call, the US president threatened further sanctions on Russia and reiterated his demand for Putin to accept his ceasefire proposal.
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“The US calls for, ideally, a 30-day unconditional ceasefire,” he wrote on Truth Social. “If the ceasefire is not respected, the US and its partners will impose further sanctions.”
Since Trump first proposed a ceasefire earlier this year, Putin has teased negotiators with suggestions he is willing to accept peace at the same time as Russian troops battle to advance into the Ukrainian province of Dnipro.
Last month the Russian president announced a 30-hour truce to mark Easter, although sporadic fighting continued. Most recently, Putin declared a three-day ceasefire to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, a proposal that was rejected by Zelensky. Battles have continued along the front.
In his speech in Red Square on Friday, Putin compared the Second World War to his “special military operation” in Ukraine and said Russia “was and will be an indestructible barrier against Nazism, Russophobia, antisemitism”. Zelensky is Jewish.
Saturday’s visit to Kyiv was Merz’s first to Ukraine since his election as German chancellor this week. Merz, 69, previously suggested he could approve the delivery of Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine, a step considered too provocative by his predecessor, Olaf Scholz, given their range of more than 300 miles and potential use against targets inside Russia.
