RUSSIAN PRESIDENT VLADIMIR Putin has proposed restarting direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on 15 May, “without preconditions”, a move Volodymyr Zelenskyy has welcomed while demanding a ceasefire take effect before negotiations begin. 

Speaking to reporters in the Kremlin in the early hours of this morning, Putin proposed to “restart” peace talks Russia and Ukraine held in 2022.

“We are committed to serious negotiations with Ukraine,” Putin said, adding that he does not rule out agreeing to a ceasefire later, in the course of direct talks with Ukraine.

Calling it a “positive sign”, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on X: “The entire world has been waiting for this for a very long time.”

However, he added: “The very first step in truly ending any war is a ceasefire.”

Zelenskyy appeared to insist on his proposal to start a 30-day unconditional ceasefire on Monday, adding on X:

“There is no point in continuing the killing even for a single day. We expect Russia to confirm a ceasefire – full, lasting, and reliable – starting tomorrow, 12 May, and Ukraine is ready to meet.”

Meanwhile, Russia resumed mass drone attacks in Ukraine early on Sunday, after its self-declared three-day pause expired.

Putin’s remarks came after leaders from four major European countries threatened to ratchet up pressure on Putin if he does not accept an unconditional 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine that they offered on Saturday in a strong show of unity with Kyiv.

The leaders of France, the United Kingdom, Germany and Poland said their proposal for a ceasefire to start on Monday was supported by US President Donald Trump, whom they had briefed over the phone earlier in the day.

Putin once again said the Kremlin needs a truce that would lead to a “lasting peace” instead of one that would allow Ukraine to rearm and mobilise more men into its armed forces.

He said he would speak to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and ask him to facilitate the peace talks on May 15, saying “those who truly want peace cannot but support” his proposal to restart the peace talks.

Putin did not directly address this latest ceasefire proposal, but Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on Saturday told CNN that Moscow will need to consider the proposal.

Earlier that day, Peskov reiterated Russia’s claim that it was ready for peace talks with Ukraine “without preconditions” and accused Kyiv of blocking those.

Russia’s own unilateral three-day ceasefire, declared for the 80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany expired on Saturday, and Ukraine said Russian forces have repeatedly violated it.

In March, the United States proposed an immediate, limited 30-day truce, which Ukraine accepted, but the Kremlin has held out for terms more to its liking.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, speaking to reporters alongside the European leaders in Kyiv, called their meeting “a very important signal”.

In a joint statement, as published on Zelenskyy’s official website, the five leaders called for a ceasefire “lasting at least 30 days” from Monday, to make room for a diplomatic push to end the war.

“An unconditional ceasefire by definition cannot be subject to any conditions. If Russia calls for such conditions, this can only be considered as an effort to prolong the war and undermine diplomacy,” the statement read.

French President Emmanuel Macron said that the US would take the lead in monitoring the proposed ceasefire, with support from European countries, and threatened “massive sanctions… prepared and coordinated, between Europeans and Americans,” should Russia violate the truce.

Macron travelled to Kyiv with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

“This is Europe stepping up, showing our solidarity with Ukraine,” Starmer said.