Russia has proposed holding a new round of direct peace talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on June 2, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced on Wednesday.
The Kremlin’s proposal follows a previous meeting in Istanbul on May 16 — the first direct contact since March 2022 — which failed to deliver a ceasefire. Moscow has insisted that certain conditions must be met before a truce can be reached. Kyiv has yet to respond to the new offer.
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“We hope that all those sincerely interested in the success of the peace process will support holding a new round of negotiations,” Lavrov said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, following a call with US President Donald Trump on May 19, said Moscow was willing to work on a memorandum for a future peace accord.
Vladimir Medinsky, head of Russia’s negotiating team, said he had contacted Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov to propose the June 2 meeting in Istanbul, stating Russia was ready for a “substantive discussion” on the ceasefire package.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said both sides had agreed to prepare their respective proposals for a ceasefire and would exchange them at the next round.
‘We’ll respond differently’
Trump on Wednesday said that Putin may be intentionally delaying negotiations on the ceasefire and expressed disappointment at Russian bombings.
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Asked if he thinks Putin wants to end the war, Trump told reporters: “I can’t tell you that.” He then adds: “We’re going to find out whether or not he’s tapping us along or not, and if he is, we’ll respond a little differently.”
He adds that he’s “very disappointed” at continued Russian bombing while ceasefire negotiations are taking place.
When asked why he hasn’t imposed new sanctions on Russia, Trump said: “I think I’m close to getting a deal [to end the war], I don’t want to screw it up by doing that.”
“I’m a lot tougher than the people you’re talking about,” he added. “But you have to know when to use that.”
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Trump also said that he would sit down with both Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Vladimir Putin “if it’s necessary” to end the war.
“At this point … we’re working on President Putin and we’ll see where we are … I don’t like what’s happening,” Trump said.
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