Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed holding direct talks with Ukraine on May 15 in Istanbul, Turkey, in what would be the first face-to-face meeting between the warring nations since peace talks began earlier this year.

“We are determined to have serious negotiations … to eliminate the root causes of the conflict,” Putin told reporters in a late-night statement.

In his remarks, the Russian president also left open the possibility of reaching a “new” ceasefire agreement with Ukraine.

“We do not exclude that during these talks we will be able to agree on some new ceasefire,” he added.

Putin’s comments follow a high-level summit meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine, featuring European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, during which they pressured Russia into accepting an unconditional 30-day ceasefire by May 12, or else face significant sanctions on its banking and energy sectors.

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