The Kremlin says it is open to direct talks with Ukraine but has declined to back Kyiv’s proposal to extend the Easter ceasefire.
Vladimir Putin’s spokesperson told reporters in Moscow on Tuesday that there were no concrete plans for negotiations on halting strikes against civilian targets, but that the Russian president was willing to discuss this directly with Ukraine if Kyiv removed “certain obstacles”.
While rare, it is not unprecedented for Putin to suggest direct talks with the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Speaking on Tuesday in Kyiv, Zelenskyy said Ukraine was ready to hold direct talks with Russia “in any format”. But he said this could only happen if Moscow first implemented a complete ceasefire – something, he said, it had failed to do over the Easter weekend.
On Friday, Putin announced a 30-hour pause in fighting. Zelenskyy said during this period the Russian army scaled back its military operation, with no long-range strikes and fewer assaults. But it did not observe a genuine ceasefire, and carried out numerous attacks with kamikaze drones, he said.
Russia has frequently claimed it was open to talks with Ukraine but that Kyiv made that legally impossible under a 2022 decree barring negotiations with Putin. The Russian leader has previously suggested Ukraine must hold elections and choose a new president before any such talks could take place.
There have been no official talks between the two sides since the early weeks after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
On Tuesday, Zelenskyy reiterated Ukraine’s readiness for immediate discussions to end attacks on civilian infrastructure.
“Our proposal for a ceasefire on civilian objects also remains in force. We need Russia’s serious readiness to talk about it. There are and will be no obstacles on the Ukrainian side,” Zelenskyy said in a statement.
Putin and Zelenskyy have recently appeared more positive over the prospect of peace talks, probably in response to mounting pressure from the Trump administration, which has said it may abandon its mediation efforts unless progress is made.
Russia also reported a decrease in fighting during the Easter truce, and accused Ukraine of violating the temporary ceasefire.
Speaking on Russian television on Monday, Putin said Russia had a “positive attitude towards any peace initiatives”.
However, he has publicly given no indication he is prepared to back down from some of his extreme demands, including the demilitarisation of Ukraine and full Russian control over the four Ukrainian regions illegally annexed in 2022.
The Kremlin on Tuesday also warned that negotiators were unlikely to obtain a swift breakthrough in peace talks on the war.
Ukrainian officials are expected to meet western allies in London on Wednesday for US-led talks on ending the war. The meeting is expected to follow up on last week’s discussions in Paris, where the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, presented Washington’s proposed plan for a resolution to the conflict.
Media reports suggest the US is promoting a “peace deal” that heavily favours Russia. The proposal reportedly includes freezing the conflict along the current 1,000km frontline, recognising Crimea as part of Russia, and a Russian veto over Ukraine joining Nato.
Kyiv is expected to respond to the proposal during the talks in London.
The US is expected to relay Ukraine’s response to Putin, with Steve Witkoff – a close friend of Donald Trump and his informal envoy – set to visit Moscow later this week. Witkoff has previously held three in-depth meetings with Putin, and his relationship with the Kremlin has raised concerns in Ukraine that he may be amplifying Russian narratives.
Zelenskyy said he did not want to lose the US as a strategic ally and said it had a crucial role to play in the peace process. “We are America’s ally. Russia is a historic enemy of the US,” he said. “I believe the US is the real leader. We want them to exert pressure on Russia.”
