Putin calls on Ukraine to begin direct talks in Istanbul next week as Victory Day 'truce' ends

Editor’s Note: This is a developing story and is being updated.

Russia is inviting Ukraine to engage in direct talks in Istanbul beginning May 15, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on May 11 in a press conference marking the end of Moscow’s Victory Day celebrations.

“Russia is ready for negotiations without any preconditions,” Putin said.

There have been no direct talks between Russia and Ukraine since shortly after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Putin notably did not announce an extension of the three-day truce or agree to Ukraine and Europe’s proposal for a 30-day unconditional ceasefire. Such an agreement could be negotiated during the Istanbul talks, he said.

Putin unilaterally declared a temporary ceasefire in honor of Victory Day — which Russia observes on May 9 — from midnight May 8 until midnight on May 11. Despite the three-day truce, Russian attacks against Ukrainian civilians and combat operations on the front line continued.

During his remarks, Putin accused Ukraine of escalating attacks against Russia in the days leading up to the Victory Day “truce” and of violating the three-day ceasefire multiple times, including by launching five cross-border incursions into Kursk and Belgorod oblasts.  

These incursions held “no military significance,” he claimed.

Putin also said that he looks forward to “restoring relations with European states,” despite their “anti-Russian rhetoric” and delivery of “ultimatums” to Moscow.

President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders on May 10 demanded that Russia agree to an unconditional 30-day ceasefire starting on May 12. The proposal is backed by U.S. President Donald Trump.

If Russia refuses the proposal, Europe and the U.S. are threatening to respond with increased sanctions.

Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said earlier that Russia needs to “think about” the ceasefire proposal and is “resistant to any kinds of pressure."

As Western leaders press for an extended ceasefire, Russia has sent some signals that indicate a potential escalation of attacks.

The Ukrainian defense news outlet Militarnyi reported on May 10 that Russia is closing its airspace over the Kapustin Yar military training and rocket launch complex from May 12 to 13, raising speculation of a possible Oreshnik missile launch.

A similar ban was put in place ahead of Russia’s first Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile strike on Ukraine.

The U.S. embassy in Kyiv also issued a warning on May 9 that Russia could launch “a potentially significant” attack in the coming days, although they have previously issued similar warnings as part of standard security protocols.

‘We have not surrendered’ — how Ukrainians living under Russian occupation defied Putin’s ‘Victory Day’

Editor’s Note: The identities of Yellow Ribbon activists who live in Russian-occupied territory have been withheld for security reasons. “When my child hears about May 9 they almost scream, and so do I,” an activist with the Ukrainian Yellow Ribbon civil resistance group currently living in the Russian-occupied town of Tokmak in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, tells the Kyiv Independent. “Every week at school, from the very beginning of the semester, my kid has to do something about May 9,’” “We have le

The Kyiv IndependentYuliia Taradiuk