CNN
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Ukrainian President Voldimir Zelensky said he was ready to meet Vladimir Putin this week shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump urged him to “quickly” accept the Russian leader’s offer to hold peace talks in Turkey.
After meeting in Kiev on Saturday, Ukraine’s major European allies gave Russia an ultimatum. By Monday they will either agree to an unconditional 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine or face “massive” new sanctions. Trump supported the initiative, said new German Prime Minister Friedrich Merz.
In his late-night speech, Putin refused to grant an ultimatum. Ignoring the offer of a ceasefire, he proposed instead to hold a “in-person meeting” with Ukraine in Turkey on Thursday.
Ukrainian allies spent Sunday emphasizing that there was no further consultation before Putin agreed to an unconditional ceasefire. But Trump undermines efforts to put pressure on Putin, saying Ukraine should agree to meet with Russian officials “quickly” on Thursday.
“I have a meeting now!!!” Trump wrote about the true society.
Within an hour, Zelensky said he was ready to meet Putin this week, as it will be the first meeting of leaders since Russia began the war.
“I’m waiting for Putin at Türkiye on Thursday. Personally. I hope that this time the Russians can’t find an excuse,” Zelensky told X on Sunday.
Zelensky said a “complete and lasting ceasefire” from Monday would provide “necessary grounds for diplomacy,” but did not specify this as a prerequisite for attending consultations.
On Saturday, Putin faced joint calls from Europe and the US to accept a ceasefire by Monday’s deadline, but by Sunday, counteroffers for “direct” consultations have reassured much of the pressure on Moscow and shifted focus to potential consultations this week. European leaders have yet to say whether they will promote additional threatened sanctions against Russia if the ceasefire is not in place by Monday.
Before Trump’s comments, Zelensky responded in fear to Putin’s offer, calling it a “positive sign,” but emphasized that Kiev was initially hoping that Moscow would agree to a new ceasefire proposal. Ukraine’s European allies have more forcibly rejected Putin’s offer, saying there will be no new talks before the ceasefire.
German new prime minister, Mertz, said he had discussed “we cannot start until the weapons are silent.” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tass said the world is still waiting for Russia’s “unilateral decision on an immediate and unconditional ceasefire.” French President Emmanuel Macron said Putin’s counter offer was “not enough.”
Keith Kellogg, the Trump administration’s special envoy to Ukraine, is a special envoy to Ukraine, which has been declining since January, and has repeated the Europeans’ claims, saying a ceasefire must come before a speech saying “not the other way around.”
However, Trump has abandoned his previous demand for Russia to agree to a 30-day ceasefire and instead called for Ukraine to attend peace talks without prerequisites.
For months, Ukraine and its allies have tried to convince the Trump administration that Putin will act maliciously, saying that Russia’s consent to a ceasefire could serve as a test of whether it is serious about achieving the peace that the US president has long demanded.
But Putin’s offer for in-person talks came at 1am on Sunday, local time at a rare TV address, a gamble that was distracting from the fact that Russia is likely to block the deadline for Monday’s ceasefire, analysts said.
Putin’s offer was “huge pressure” to help Zelensky agree to hold talks in Turkey, Sergei Radchenko, a professor of advanced international studies at Johns Hopkins, told CNN.
“Why? Because otherwise he has to deal with Trump. Who would say, ‘Is this undermining my peace initiative?’
Putin, who has already set the stage for talks, spoke with Turkish President Recept Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday. The Kremlin said Erdogan “full support” Putin’s proposal for peace negotiations, offering its venue in Istanbul.
Ankara confirmed that Turkey is ready to hold negotiations, but a statement from the country’s presidency suggested that it agreed with Ukrainian allies that a ceasefire must come before the speech.
“Looking at the opening of windows of opportunity to achieve peace, President Erdogan said a comprehensive ceasefire would create the necessary environment for peace negotiations,” the statement said. He did not say whether Turkey would refuse to host consultations if Russia refused to offer a ceasefire.
The White House said Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit Turkey from Wednesday through Friday to attend an informal meeting of NATO Foreign Ministers and discuss the “end of the Russian-Ukraine War.”
Trump’s reduced his demands on Russia and agreeing to a ceasefire indicates a dramatic change in his approach. Last week, Trump called for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine without providing a deadline. “If the ceasefire is not respected, the US and its partners will impose further sanctions,” he warned. Kiev’s European leaders added weight to the threat by naming Monday as the deadline.
Radchenko said Putin’s late-night peace negotiations offer was an attempt to return pressure on Russia to Ukraine.
“He knows Trump wants to meet in person,” Radchenko said. “Now, Ukrainians are people who don’t agree with me, saying, ‘Look, we’re offering talks,'” he’s bringing the ball back to Kiev’s court. ”
Not only was it distracting from snubbing the ceasefire proposal, the offer allowed Putin to pose “kindly invite Ukraine to the table as a pesen maker.” “He is believed to be taking the initiative.”
In his speech, Putin said that Russia has not ruled out “some new ceasefires, new ceasefires during these talks,” but emphasized that the talks aim to eliminate the “root cause” of the conflict.
Around the same time as Putin’s late-night speech, the three-day suspension in the battle ordered by the Russian leadership ended. Ukraine reported more than 100 drone attacks overnight. Both sides denounced each other’s continued attacks during the armistice ordered by Putin to mark the day of Losin’s World War II victory.
