Putin says he is open to direct peace talks with Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed on Monday bilateral talks with Ukraine for the first time since the early days of the war, and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv was eager to discuss a halt to attacks on civilian targets.

While Zelenskyy did not respond directly to Putin's proposal, he emphasised in his nightly video address that Ukraine "was ready for any conversation" about a ceasefire that would stop strikes on civilians.

The two leaders face pressure from the United States, which has threatened to walk away from its peace efforts unless some progress is achieved.

Russia and Ukraine have said they are open to further ceasefires after a 30-hour Easter truce declared by Moscow at the weekend. Each side accused the other of violating it.

Ukraine will take part in talks with the US and European countries on Wednesday in London, Zelenskyy said. The discussions are a follow-up to a Paris meeting last week where the US and European states discussed ways to end the more than three-year-old war.

Putin, speaking to a Russian state TV reporter, said fighting had resumed after the Easter ceasefire, which he announced unilaterally on Saturday. And Moscow, he said, was open to any peace initiatives and expected the same from Kyiv. "We have always talked about this, that we have a positive attitude towards any peace initiatives. We hope that representatives of the Kyiv regime will feel the same way," Putin told state TV reporter Pavel Zarubin.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, quoted later by Interfax news agency, told reporters: "When the president said that it was possible to discuss the issue of not striking civilian targets, including bilaterally, the president had in mind negotiations and discussions with the Ukrainian side."

There have been no direct talks between the two sides since the early weeks after Russia's February 2022 invasion.

HALTING ATTACKS ON CIVILIAN TARGETS

Zelenskyy, in his nightly video address, said Ukraine stood by its proposal for an end to attacks on civilian targets and was ready for any form of discussion to achieve it. Previously, the US and Ukraine had framed this as a 30-day ceasefire. "Ukraine maintains its proposal not to strike at the very least civilian targets. And we are expecting a clear response from Moscow," he said. "We are ready for any conversation about how to achieve this."

He said the London talks "have a primary task: to push for an unconditional ceasefire. This must be the starting point".

Zelenskyy had earlier on Monday said an unconditional ceasefire would be "followed by the establishment of a real and lasting peace".

Washington has said it would welcome an extension of the weekend truce. Zelenskyy said continued Russian attacks during the Easter ceasefire showed Moscow was intent on prolonging the war. He also said that Ukraine's forces were instructed to continue to mirror the Russian army's actions. "The nature of Ukraine's actions will remain symmetrical: ceasefire will be met with ceasefire, and Russian strikes will be met with our own in defence. Actions always speak louder than words," he said on X.

US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio both said on Friday that Washington could abandon the peace talks without progress within days. Trump struck a more optimistic note Sunday, saying that "hopefully" the two sides would make a deal "this week".

Russia's demands include Ukraine ceding all the land Putin claims to have annexed and accepting permanent neutrality. Ukraine says that would amount to surrender and leave it undefended if Moscow attacks again.

"President Putin and the Russian side remain open to seeking a peaceful settlement. We are continuing to work with the American side and, of course, we hope that this work will yield results," Peskov told reporters.