内容摘要：“As soon as the president considers it necessary, we will make an announcement,” Peskov said.

“As soon as the president considers it necessary, we will make an announcement,” Peskov said.

in Istanbul on Thursday instead “without preconditions.” He did not specify whether the talks on Thursday would involve Zelenskyy and himself personally.He said a ceasefire might be agreed on during the negotiations — but stressed that the Kremlin needs a truce that would lead to a “lasting peace” instead of one that would allow Ukraine to rearm and mobilize more men into its armed forces.

Zelenskyy said on X on Sunday morning that it was a “positive sign that the Russians have finally begun to consider ending the war,” but insisted on a ceasefire first.Putin and Zelenskyy have only met once — in 2019. After repeated unsuccessful calls for a personal meeting with the Russian leader early on in the war, and following the Kremlin’s decision in September 2022 to illegally annex four regions of Ukraine, Zelenskyy enacted a decree declaring that holding negotiations with Putin had become impossible.Macron said Sunday that Putin’s offer of direct negotiations with Ukraine is “a first step, but not enough,” signaling continued Western skepticism toward Moscow’s intentions.

“An unconditional ceasefire is not preceded by negotiations,” Macron told reporters at the Polish-Ukrainian border, according to French media, adding that Putin is “looking for a way out, but he still wants to buy time.”Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, in comments aired by Russian state TV on Sunday, called Putin’s proposal “very serious,” aimed at eliminating “the root causes of the conflict,” and said it “confirms a real intention to find a peaceful solution.”

Without directly mentioning Moscow’s proposal, Trump said in a social media post several hours after Putin’s overnight remarks that it was “a potentially great day for Russia and Ukraine!”

“Think of the hundreds of thousands of lives that will be saved as this never ending ‘bloodbath’ hopefully comes to an end,” Trump wrote. “I will continue to work with both sides to make sure that it happens. The USA wants to focus, instead, on Rebuilding and Trade. A BIG week upcoming!” he added.Also on Monday, U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy was hosting in London senior diplomatic officials from France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Poland and the European Union to discuss how best to fight back against Russian aggression.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said he expected the two sides to reach a compromise in the coming days that might break the deadlock over whether talks could begin without a truce in place.Russian and Ukrainian officials are mindful of public opinion in their countries and are trying to secure the support of the United States for their stances, he said in explaining the delay.

In Kyiv, residents expressed a mixture of hope and despondency at the latest peace efforts.Putin doesn’t want a truce to halt the war, because “it will mean that he has lost,” Antonina Metko, 43, told The Associated Press. “That is why they are postponing it. And everything will continue in the same way. Unfortunately.”