By Enyichukwu Enemanna
French President Emmanuel Macron has tackled Russia over its proposal to hold direct peace talks with Ukraine to end the over three-year invasion of Kyiv by Russian forces.
Macron said that Putin’s proposal for direct peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv showed that the Russian leader is looking for a way forward, but he’s also trying to buy time.
“It’s a first step, but it’s not enough,” Macron told reporters on his way back from Ukraine early on Sunday. “An unconditional ceasefire is not preceded by negotiations.”
Putin’s direct talks with Ukraine were also welcomed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who said Kyiv was willing to talk, arguing that Moscow must agree to a ceasefire.
The war was sparked in February 2022 when Putin dispatched thousands of troops to Ukraine, launching a conflict that has killed hundreds of thousands of soldiers and triggered the gravest confrontation between Russia and the West since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.
With Russian forces still launching onslaughts on Ukrainian territories, Putin has proposed talks with Ukraine in the Turkish city of Istanbul, which he said would be held without preconditions and aimed at a durable peace.
“We are proposing that Kyiv resume direct negotiations without any preconditions,” Putin said in a televised statement from the Kremlin that began after 1:30 a.m. on Sunday (2230 GMT Saturday). “We offer the Kyiv authorities to resume negotiations already on Thursday, in Istanbul.”
Zelenskiy said in a post on social media platform X that it was “a positive sign that the Russians have finally begun to consider ending the war”, but “the very first step in truly ending any war is a ceasefire.”
“We expect Russia to confirm a ceasefire – full, lasting, and reliable – starting tomorrow, May 12th, and Ukraine is ready to meet,” he said.
U.S. President Donald Trump, who says he wants to be remembered as a peacemaker and has repeatedly promised to end the war, said a great day was dawning for Russia and Ukraine if the “bloodbath” of the war could be ended.
“A potentially great day for Russia and Ukraine!” Trump said on Truth Social. “Think of the hundreds of thousands of lives that will be saved as this never-ending ‘bloodbath’ hopefully comes to an end.”
