Kyiv Ready for Talks if Moscow Commits to Truce: Zelensky

Ukraine Leader Agrees to May 15 Meeting in Istanbul, if Russia Confirms 30-Day Ceasefire

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KYIV - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on May 11 Kyiv would meet Moscow for talks in Istanbul on May 15, but Russia must first commit to a 30-day ceasefire starting on May 12.

"It is a positive sign that the Russians have finally begun to consider ending the war... and the very first step in truly ending any war is a ceasefire," Mr. Zelensky said on X.

He said he expects Moscow to commit to a 30-day ceasefire starting on May 12, and that Kyiv is "ready" for direct talks with Russia.

"There is no point in continuing the killing even for a single day. We expect Russia to confirm a ceasefire—full, lasting, and reliable—starting tomorrow, May 12th," he said.

Kyiv and its Western allies have said that an unconditional ceasefire to pause fighting is the only way to advance a diplomatic solution to the three-year-old conflict—Europe's worst since World War II.

Mr. Zelensky's chief of staff Andriy Yermak said Kyiv would only meet if Moscow agreed to the ceasefire from May 12.

"First, a 30-day ceasefire, then everything else," he said on social media. "A ceasefire is the first step towards ending the war, and it will confirm Russia's readiness to end the killing."

Speaking in the early hours of May 11 at the Kremlin, Russian President Vladimir Putin offered direct talks with Kyiv in Istanbul on May 15.

"We are proposing that Kyiv resume direct negotiations without any preconditions," Mr. Putin said.

"We offer the Kyiv authorities to resume negotiations already on (May 15), in Istanbul," he said.

"We do not exclude that during these talks we will be able to agree on some new ceasefire."