Putin hints at bilateral talks with Kyiv, truce falters

Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed holding direct talks with Ukraine for the first time in years, a move that follows mounting pressure from the United States to show a real interest in peace. The statement comes days after Moscow’s one-day Easter truce failed to hold.

Speaking to Russian state television on Monday, Putin said Russia was still open to peace initiatives and could discuss refraining from strikes on civilian targets, even bilaterally with Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov clarified the comment, telling Russian media that Putin had in mind “negotiations and discussions with the Ukrainian side.” The remarks follow a short-lived, 30-hour ceasefire over the Orthodox Easter weekend, which both countries accused each other of violating.

Kyiv had largely dismissed the Russian truce as a political ploy. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy instead proposed a 30-day ceasefire targeting civilian infrastructure — a proposal that has so far gone unanswered by Moscow.

"Actions always speak louder than words," Zelenskyy wrote on X, saying that Ukrainian forces would mirror Russia’s military posture: strikes would be met with strikes, and ceasefire with ceasefire.

Zelenskyy confirmed that a Ukrainian delegation would travel to London this week for talks with the United States, Britain, and France. The meeting follows last week’s gathering in Paris, part of a wider effort to secure a ceasefire and eventual peace. While the Ukrainian president made no direct reference to Putin’s offer, he said Kyiv was “ready to move forward as constructively as possible.”

U.S. President Donald Trump, who has been leading Washington’s mediation effort, warned on Friday that the U.S. could pull out of talks if both sides fail to show progress. However, on Sunday he struck a more hopeful tone, saying a breakthrough could come "this week."

Moscow has yet to shift its demands, including Ukraine’s formal recognition of territories Russia claims to have annexed and a commitment to neutrality — conditions Kyiv continues to reject.

Despite Sunday passing without air raid sirens in Ukraine, Zelenskyy said Russian forces had violated the truce nearly 3,000 times, with the worst attacks focused on the Pokrovsk region. Russia claimed more than 900 drone strikes and hundreds of artillery rounds from Ukraine, saying civilians had been killed or wounded.

Though both sides are talking about peace, the battlefield tells a different story. Whether the upcoming London summit changes that remains to be seen.

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