Trump ‘open’ to assembly leaders of Ukraine, Russia to push ceasefire

Delegations from each side did, nevertheless, agree one other large-scale prisoner trade of their assembly in Istanbul, which in mid-May additionally hosted their first spherical of face-to-face talks.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan proposed that Russian President Vladimir Putin, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Trump come collectively for a 3rd spherical later this month in both Istanbul or Ankara.

Putin has to date refused such a gathering. But Zelensky has mentioned he’s keen, underlining that key points can solely be resolved at leaders-level.

Trump, who desires a swift finish to the three-year conflict, “is open to it if it comes to that, but he wants both of these leaders and both sides to come to the table together”, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt mentioned in Washington.

Zelensky mentioned that “we really expect Trump to take strong steps”, and urged the US chief to toughen sanctions on Russia to “push” it to conform to a full ceasefire.

In Monday’s assembly, Ukraine mentioned that Moscow had rejected its name for an unconditional ceasefire. It provided as a substitute a partial truce of two to a few days in some areas of the frontline.

Russia will solely agree a full ceasefire if Ukrainian troops pull again completely from 4 areas, Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson in keeping with its negotiating phrases reported on by Russian state media. Russia presently solely partly controls these areas.

Moscow has additionally demanded a ban on Kyiv becoming a member of NATO, limiting Ukraine’s navy and ending Western navy help.

Top negotiators from each side confirmed their newest talks yielded a deal to swap all severely wounded troopers in addition to all captured fighters underneath the age of 25.

Russia’s lead negotiator Vladimir Medinsky mentioned it could contain “at least 1,000” on both sides topping the 1,000-for-1,000 POW trade agreed at talks final month.

The two sides additionally agreed handy over the our bodies of 6,000 killed troopers, Ukraine mentioned after the talks.

“The Russian side continued to reject the motion of an unconditional ceasefire,” Ukraine’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergiy Kyslytsya advised reporters after the talks.

Russia mentioned it had provided a restricted pause in combating.

“We have proposed a specific ceasefire for two to three days in certain areas of the front line,” prime negotiator Vladimir Medinsky mentioned, including that this was wanted to gather the our bodies of useless troopers from the battlefield.

Kyiv mentioned it could research a doc the Russian facet handed its negotiators outlining its calls for for each peace and a full ceasefire.

Zelensky mentioned after the Istanbul talks concluded that any deal should not “reward” Putin.

“The key to lasting peace is clear, the aggressor must not receive any reward for war,” Zelensky mentioned at a press convention in Vilnius alongside a number of NATO leaders.

The Ukrainian president has mentioned a long-term peace deal can solely occur as soon as combating has paused, and has known as for a right away and unconditional ceasefire to cowl fight on air, sea and land.

Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov, who led his nation’s delegation, known as for a subsequent assembly to happen earlier than the top of June. He additionally mentioned a Putin-Zelensky summit needs to be mentioned.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan mentioned after the talks inside a luxurious lodge on the banks of the Bosphorus that they had been held “in a constructive atmosphere”.

“The parties built on the points they had agreed upon during the first meeting,” Fidan mentioned on X.

“During the meeting, the parties decided to continue preparations for a possible meeting at the leader level,” he mentioned.

Tens of 1000’s have been killed since Russia invaded, with swathes of jap and southern Ukraine destroyed and thousands and thousands pressured to flee their properties in Europe’s largest refugee disaster since World War II.

In the front-line city of Dobropillya in jap Ukraine, 53-year-old Volodymyr advised AFP he had no hope left for an finish to the battle.

“We thought that everything would stop. And now there is nothing to wait for. We have no home, nothing. We were almost killed by drones,” he mentioned.

After months of setbacks for Kyiv’s navy, Ukraine mentioned it had carried out an audacious assault on Sunday, smuggling drones into Russia after which firing them at airbases, damaging round 40 strategic Russian bombers value $7 billion in a serious particular operation.

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