Putin proposes restarting peace talks with Ukraine ‘without preconditions’ after European leaders threaten sanctions
by Josef Al Shemary · LBCBy Josef Al Shemary
Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed restarting direct peace talks with Ukraine 'without preconditions'.
Listen to this article
Loading audio...
Speaking to reporters in the Kremlin in the early hours of Sunday, Putin proposed to "restart" peace talks Russia and Ukraine held in 2022.
He suggested the talks should "start without delay, as early as 15 May".
"We seek serious talks... to remove the root causes of the conflict and start moving towards a lasting, strong peace", he said on Saturday in a late-night televised speech from the Kremlin.
It comes just hours after leaders from four major European countries including the UK 'called out' Putin as they urged to accept a 30-day ceasefire.
Sir Keir Starmer had called on the Russian president to show he is "serious about peace" by extending the VE Day pause in fighting to a 30-day unconditional ceasefire with negotiations to follow.
Speaking after a meeting with the European allies in Kyiv, Sir Keir said: "All of us here, together with the US are calling Putin out."
The Prime Minister reiterated his support for Ukraine to get the "just and lasting peace" that it "deserves". He added: "No ifs, not buts."
Read more: Skilled foreign workers will need university degrees to work in Britain in new immigration proposals
He warned that the European leaders are all clear, that if Putin rejects peace, they will respond by increasing sanctions on Russia and increasing spending to help Ukraine's defence efforts.
The leaders of France, the United Kingdom, Germany and Poland said their proposal for a ceasefire to start on Monday was supported by US president Donald Trump, whom they had briefed over the phone earlier in the day.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on Saturday said that Moscow will need to consider the proposal, but also suggested the comments by the European leaders had a "confrontational" character.
Earlier that day, Peskov reiterated Russia's claim that it was ready for peace talks with Ukraine "without preconditions" and accused Kyiv of blocking those.
But Putin has not directly addressed the European proposal, but has now signalled Russia is willing to begin direct talks with Ukraine.
Russia's own unilateral three-day ceasefire, declared for the 80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany expired on Saturday, and Ukraine said Russian forces have repeatedly violated it.
In March, the United States proposed an immediate, limited 30-day truce, which Ukraine accepted, but the Kremlin has held out for terms more to its liking.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking to reporters alongside the European leaders in Kyiv, called their meeting "a very important signal".
In a joint statement, as published on Zelensky's official website, the five leaders called for a ceasefire "lasting at least 30 days" from Monday, to make room for a diplomatic push to end the war.
"An unconditional ceasefire by definition cannot be subject to any conditions. If Russia calls for such conditions, this can only be considered as an effort to prolong the war and undermine diplomacy," the statement read.
French President Emmanuel Macron said that the US would take the lead in monitoring the proposed ceasefire, with support from European countries, and threatened "massive sanctions... prepared and coordinated, between Europeans and Americans," should Russia violate the truce.
Mr Macron travelled to Kyiv with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
"This is Europe stepping up, showing our solidarity with Ukraine," Sir Keir said.