Let's meet face to face, Zelenskyy urges Putin

Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy has challenged Vladimir Putin to meet in person for peace talks in Istanbul on Thursday and urged Russia to accept a 30-day truce, in a dramatic turn after a weekend of fast-moving diplomacy.

- Shaun Walker Kyiv Pjotr Sauer

His comments came after the US president, Donald Trump, pressed him to agree "immediately" to Putin's offer of negotiations this week with Russia, but Zelenskyy upped the stakes by suggesting the enemies meet "personally".

"We await a full and lasting ceasefire, starting tomorrow, to provide the necessary basis for diplomacy," the Ukrainian president said. "There is no point in prolonging the killings. And I will be waiting for Putin in Türkiye on Thursday. Personally. I hope that this time the Russians will not look for excuses."

The two leaders have not communicated directly since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and no publicly known talks between Moscow and Kyiv have taken place since March 2022, shortly after the war began.

Zelenskyy's statement came shortly after Trump had told Kyiv to agree to Putin's call for direct talks next week with Ukraine, sidelining a carefully orchestrated European-led movement to force the Russian leader to sign up to a 30-day ceasefire.

Trump said on his Truth Social platform that Ukraine should "HAVE THE MEETING, NOW!!!".