Russia-Ukraine war: Putin proposes fresh talks with Ukraine in Istanbul, ignores Kyiv's call for 30-day ceasefire

Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a surprise overnight statement on Sunday (May 11) proposed a new round of direct peace talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on May 15.

The Russian president's statement comes after Kyiv and European leaders called for a 30-day unconditional ceasefire set to begin Monday. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, along with the leaders of Britain, France, Germany and Poland, on Saturday (May 10) threatened Moscow with fresh sanctions if the nation did not agree with the proposal.

Putin ignores ceasefire proposal

The Russian president in his talks statement – delivered after 1:00 am (2200 GMT Saturday) in the Kremlin – made no mention of the ceasefire proposal and instead framed the return to talks as Russia's own initiative.

"We propose to the Kyiv authorities to resume the talks that they broke off in 2022, and, I emphasise, without any preconditions".

"We propose to start (negotiations) without delay on Thursday, May 15, in Istanbul," Putin said. He added that he would talk to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogdan soon to ask his help to facilitate the talks.

Back to Istanbul?

Earlier, during the first few weeks of the conflict, the two nations had attempted to hold direct talks in Istanbul, but to no avail.

Russia and Ukraine last held direct peace talks in Istanbul in early 2022, weeks after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion. Those negotiations collapsed, and the war has only escalated since.

Root causes of conflict?

Vladimir Putin also claimed to be "committed to serious negotiations with Ukraine," and said that he was looking to "eliminate the root causes of the conflict and to establish a long-lasting peace".

In the past, Russia's reference to "root causes of conflict" has typically referred to Moscow's push against NATO expansion, pledges to "de-Nazify" Ukraine, protect Russian speakers in Ukraine's east and stop the country's growing ties with the West.

Western leaders and Ukraine have consistently rejected Russia's framing of the war, particularly Moscow's references to "root causes". Instead they say Russia's offensive is nothing more than an imperial-style land grab.

Putin also said that Russia does not "exclude that during these talks we will be able to agree on some new ceasefire." He also accused Ukraine's Western allies of wanting to "continue war with Russia" and without mentioning the 30-day ceasefire proposal slammed European "ultimatums" and "anti-Russian rhetoric".

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