Putin Expresses Willingness for Direct Peace Talks with Ukraine for the First Time in Years

Under increasing pressure from Washington to signal a readiness to negotiate peace in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin made a new offer on Monday to hold bilateral talks with Kyiv for the first time in years. Putin also signaled receptiveness to continuing ceasefires following a short one-day Easter ceasefire.

In another development, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Kyiv would be sending a delegation to London this Wednesday to meet with U.S. and other Western representatives. This meeting comes after a Paris summit last week where U.S. and European leaders met to discuss possible means of ending the conflict.

Putin, talking to a Russian state television journalist, acknowledged that fighting had been renewed after his impromptu 30-hour Easter truce, which he had imposed unilaterally on Saturday. Both countries blamed the other for violating the ceasefire, with Kyiv at first rejecting Putin's ceasefire as a political ploy.

Although the U.S. said it supported prolonging the ceasefire, Zelensky commented that the perpetuation of Russian strikes throughout Sunday's truce indicated Moscow's refusal to conclude the war. Zelensky had earlier urged a 30-day ceasefire on civilian targets, but the call was answered by continued Russian attacks.

Putin, through Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, communicated that Russia was willing to accept any peace proposals and anticipated similar actions from Kyiv. Peskov explained that Putin's mention of negotiations regarding civilian protection implied direct talks with the Ukrainian side.

But Zelensky made no statement on Putin's proposal for a bilateral meeting. In an X post, the previously known Twitter platform, Zelensky announced Ukraine's delegation would take part in the London negotiations, with the United Kingdom, France, and United States representatives. He stated Ukraine's willingness to negotiate constructively to achieve an unconditional ceasefire and lasting peace. Zelensky also said there were fruitful discussions with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Earlier on Monday, Zelensky again confirmed that his troops would simply mirror Russia's actions. He emphasized that a ceasefire would be met with an equal response and Russian attacks would be responded to with Ukrainian resistance. "Actions always speak louder than words," he posted.

At the same time, U.S. President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio threatened on Friday that the U.S. could walk away from peace talks altogether if progress is not significant in the near future. Trump was optimistic on Sunday, speculating that a peace agreement could be reached as early as this week.

Russia, though, has not relaxed its terms, which involve Ukraine relinquishing the territories that Putin asserts to have annexed and accepting permanent neutrality. Kyiv sees these terms as equivalent to surrender and would expose the nation to vulnerability in the case of additional Russian aggression.

When questioned regarding Trump's statement on a possible peace deal, Kremlin spokesman Peskov refused to hazard guesses at timelines, stating, "President Putin and the Russian side remain open to seeking a peaceful settlement." He added that Russia remains engaged with the U.S. and hopes that their efforts will yield results.

In spite of Sunday's temporary respite in air raid sirens, the Ukrainian military reported almost 3,000 Russian ceasefire violations. The fighting heaviest on the Pokrovsk front along the frontline, as reported by Zelensky.

As a reply, Russia's defense ministry said Ukrainian troops had attacked Russian positions 444 times and made more than 900 drone attacks, asserting that the civilian population had casualties. Reuters can't independently confirm these war claims.