Zelensky announces he expects Putin in person next Thursday in Istanbul.

MADRID (EUROPA PRESS) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced this Sunday his willingness to meet face-to-face with Russian President Vladimir Putin next Thursday in Istanbul, Turkey, in what would be the most significant diplomatic effort to end the war in Ukraine.

Zelensky thus responded to US President Donald Trump's request for a direct meeting with the Russian leader, but also insisted on the importance of establishing a ceasefire "starting this Monday," as European leaders proposed this Saturday during a visit to Kyiv.

The Ukrainian president has already agreed to meet with Putin: "There's no point in prolonging a massacre, and I'll be waiting for Putin in Türkiye next Thursday. In person. I hope the Russians won't make excuses this time."

Putin's offer, it should be remembered, does not include a prior ceasefire agreement, as kyiv and its European allies are demanding. This circumstance, for Trump, may now be pushed into the background given the benefits that, in his opinion, an immediate meeting between kyiv and Moscow in Istanbul would bring.

Putin's proposal to resume direct dialogue with Ukraine has also been met with suspicion among kyiv's main European allies, who demand that any future negotiations be preceded by a lasting ceasefire.

French President Emmanuel Macron warned on social media that there is "a clear proposal" on the table: "an unconditional 30-day ceasefire" that should begin this Monday.

For his part, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz declared in Berlin that "first the weapons must fall silent, then talks can begin," according to the DPA news agency. In this regard, he noted that kyiv accepts this idea "without question" and, although he believes the "willingness to engage in dialogue" is "in principle a good sign" from the Kremlin, "it is by no means sufficient."