Courtesy Barrie360.com and The Associated Press

By Samya Kullab And Dasha Litvinova, May 11, 2025

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksyy said he is hoping for a full and temporary ceasefire with Russia starting Monday, adding he would be in Turkey to negotiate with Russian President Vladimir Putin “personally.”

His comments came after U.S. President Donald Trump insisted Ukraine accept Russia’s latest offer of holding direct talks in Turkey on Thursday. Ukraine, along with European allies, had demanded Russia accept an unconditional 30-day ceasefire starting on Monday before holding talks, but Moscow effectively rejected the proposal and called for direct negotiations instead.

It was not clear if Zelenskyy was conditioning his presence in Turkey on the Monday ceasefire holding.

“We await a full and lasting ceasefire, starting from tomorrow, to provide the necessary basis for diplomacy. There is no point in prolonging the killings. And I will be waiting for Putin in Türkiye on Thursday. Personally. I hope that this time the Russians will not look for excuses,” he wrote on X.

Trump said in a social media post Sunday that Ukraine should agree to Putin’s peace talks proposal “IMMEDIATELY.”

“At least they will be able to determine whether or not a deal is possible, and if it is not, European leaders, and the U.S., will know where everything stands, and can proceed accordingly!” Trump wrote, adding: “HAVE THE MEETING, NOW!!!”

Ukraine, allies insist on a ceasefire

Zelenskyy, writing on X on Sunday, said it was a “positive sign that the Russians have finally begun to consider ending the war” and said that “the entire world has been waiting for this for a very long time.”

He added, however, that “the very first step in truly ending any war is a ceasefire,” in a reference to his proposal to start a 30-day unconditional truce on Monday.

Putin in remarks to the media overnight effectively rejected that ceasefire offer and proposed restarting direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on Thursday instead “without preconditions.” 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.

Putin’s counter-offer came after leaders from four major European countries threatened to ratchet up pressure on Moscow if it does not accept an unconditional 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine.

French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk met with Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Saturday and issued a coordinated call for the truce starting Monday. The plan has received backing from both the European Union and Trump.

The leaders pledged tougher sanctions on Russia if Putin did not accept the proposal.

Zelenskyy, in his Sunday remarks, reiterated that call. “There is no point in continuing the killing even for a single day. We expect Russia to confirm a ceasefire — full, lasting, and reliable — starting tomorrow, May 12th, and Ukraine is ready to meet,” the Ukrainian leader said on X.

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.

Macron also warned that Putin is “looking for a way out, but he still wants to buy time.”

Moscow presses on with peace talks offer. Turkey says it’s ready to host

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.

In another post on Sunday, the U.S. president said Ukraine should accept Moscow’s offer “to meet on Thursday, in Turkey, to negotiate a possible end to the BLOODBATH.” He added, however, that he was “starting to doubt that Ukraine will make a deal with Putin.”

Putin spoke Sunday to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who expressed readiness to host the talks, the Kremlin said.

According to the Kremlin’s readout of the phone call, Erdogan “fully supported the Russian proposal, emphasizing his readiness to provide” a platform for the talks in Istanbul, as well as “all possible assistance in organizing and holding the negotiations aimed at achieving sustainable peace.”

Erdogan also spoke to Macron on Sunday, according to a statement from the Turkish presidential communications office, and said that a “historic turning point” had been reached in efforts to end the war.

Russian attacks continue

Meanwhile, Russia resumed mass drone attacks in Ukraine early on Sunday, after its self-declared three-day pause expired.

Russia launched 108 attack drones and simulator drones from six different directions, Ukraine’s air force said. It said 60 drones were shot down and another 41 simulator drones failed to reach targets due to Ukrainian countermeasures.

The Russian Defense Ministry on Sunday accused Ukraine of “violating” Moscow’s three-day ceasefire more than 14,000 times. Ukraine, which did not agree to the May 8-10 ceasefire, has also accused Russia of violating its own truce, with the Ukrainian foreign minister calling it a farce.

—— Litvinova reported from Tallinn, Estonia. Associated Press writers Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey, and Thomas Adamson-Koumbouzis in Paris contributed to this report.

(Updated) Russia-Ukraine peace talks end after less than 2 hours with deal to swap POWs but no ceasefire

Courtesy Barrie360.com and The Associated Press

By Hanna Arhirova, Andrew Wilks And Lorne Cook, May 16, 2025

The first direct Russia-Ukraine peace talks since the early weeks of Moscow’s 2022 invasion ended after less than two hours Friday, and while both sides agreed on a large prisoner swap, they clearly remained far apart on key conditions for ending the fighting.

One such condition for Ukraine, backed by its Western allies, is a temporary ceasefire as a first step toward a peaceful settlement. The Kremlin has pushed back against such a truce, which remains elusive.

“We haven’t received a Russian ‘yes’ on this basic point,” Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhii Tykhii said after the talks. “If you want to have serious negotiations, you have to have guns silenced.”

But Russian delegation head Vladimir Medinsky pronounced himself “satisfied with the outcome,” adding that Moscow was ready to continue contacts.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he discussed the talks with U.S. President Donald Trump and the leaders of France, Germany, the U.K. and Poland. In a post on X from a European leadership meeting in Albania, he urged “tough sanctions” against Moscow if it rejects “a full and unconditional ceasefire and an end to killings.”

In Istanbul, Kyiv and Moscow agreed to exchange 1,000 prisoners of war each, according to the heads of both delegations, in what would be their biggest such swap.

Both sides also discussed a ceasefire and a meeting between their heads of state, according to chief Ukrainian delegate, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov.

Medinsky, an aide to President Vladimir Putin, said both sides agreed to provide each other with detailed ceasefire proposals, with Ukraine requesting the heads of state meeting, which Russia took under consideration.

“The pressure on the Russian Federation must continue,” said Serhii Kyslytsia, Ukraine’s first deputy foreign minister and part of Kyiv’s delegation. “We should not really relax at this point.”

New, ‘unacceptable conditions’

During the talks, a senior Ukrainian official said Russia introduced new, “unacceptable demands” to withdraw Ukrainian forces from huge swaths of territory. The official, who was not authorized to make official statements, spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. The proposal had not been previously discussed, the official said.

The Ukrainian side reiterated it was focused on achieving real progress — an immediate ceasefire and a pathway to substantive diplomacy — “just like the U.S., European partners, and other countries proposed,” the official added.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Tykhii confirmed the Russian delegation “voiced a number of things that we deem unacceptable,” but added: “This is something that Russians usually voice, and we were keeping to our line.”

The two sides sat opposite each other at a U-shaped table in the Dolmabahce Palace but remained far apart in their conditions for ending the war. Trump, who has pressed for an end to the conflict, said he would meet with Putin “as soon as we can set it up.”

“I think it’s time for us to just do it,” Trump told reporters in Abu Dhabi as he wrapped up a trip to the Middle East.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan opened the talks by urging participants “to take advantage of this opportunity,” adding it was “critically important that the ceasefire happens as soon as possible.”

In a social media post, Fidan called the POW swap as a “confidence-building measure” and said the parties had agreed in principle to meet again.

Zelenskyy seeks European unity

Zelenskyy was in Tirana, Albania, with leaders of 47 European countries to discuss security, defense and democratic standards against the backdrop of the war. He met with French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

“Pressure on Russia must be maintained until Russia is ready to end the war,” Zelenskyy said on X, posting a photo of the leaders during the call, the second for the group since May 10.

Speaking to reporters after the call with Trump, Starmer said the Russian position “is clearly unacceptable.”

While he didn’t say what the Europeans’ response might involve, some of them pressed for new sanctions, with the European Union likely to adopt new measures as soon as Tuesday.

Macron said it was “unacceptable that, for a second time, Russia hasn’t responded to the demands made by the Americans, supported by Ukraine and the Europeans. No ceasefire, and therefore no meeting at a decision-making level. And no response.”

Merz said diplomatic efforts so far “have unfortunately failed because of Russia’s lack of readiness to take the first steps in the right direction now.”

“But we will not give up,” he added. All three said Kyiv and its allies in Europe will continue to coordinate their efforts.

Diplomatic maneuvering

Both countries engaged in diplomatic maneuvering this week as they tried to show Trump that they are eager to negotiate, although he expressed frustration with the slow progress and threatened to punish foot-dragging.

On Thursday, Putin spurned an offer by Zelenskyy to meet face-to-face in Turkey. Zelenskyy accused Moscow of not making a serious effort to end the war by sending a low-level delegation.

Ukraine has accepted a U.S. and European proposal for a full, 30-day ceasefire, but Putin has effectively rejected it by imposing far-reaching conditions.

Commenting on a possible Trump-Putin meeting, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov appeared to indicate that momentum for such a summit is building. He told reporters that top-level talks were “certainly needed,” but added that preparing a summit would take time.

Fighting continues in Ukraine

Russia, meanwhile, is preparing a fresh military offensive, Ukrainian government and Western military analysts say.

Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov was in Minsk to discuss joint military drills in September and deliveries of new weapons to Belarus. Zelenskyy has warned that the military buildup in Belarus, which borders NATO members Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, could serve as a cover for future attacks.

A Friday drone attack on the northeastern city of Kupiansk killed a 55-year-old woman and wounded four men, said Oleh Syniehubov, head of the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration..

Russia’s invasion has killed more than 12,000 Ukrainian civilians, the U.N. says, and razed towns and villages. Tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers have died, and likely a larger number of Russian troops, officials and analysts say.

One Ukrainian soldier told AP he wasn’t hopeful about the talks.

“I don’t think they will agree on anything concrete, because summer is the best time for war,” said the soldier, who used the call sign “Corsair” in accordance with Ukrainian military rules. “The enemy is trying to constantly escalate the situation.”

But he said many of his comrades “believe that by the end of the year there will be peace, albeit an unstable one, but peace.”

Before the talks, Ukrainian officials met with national security advisers from the U.S., France, Germany and the U.K. to coordinate positions, the senior Ukrainian official told AP. The U.S. team was led by retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, while Umerov and presidential office chief Andriy Yermak represented Ukraine, the official said.

A three-way meeting between Turkey, the U.S. and Ukraine also took place, Turkish Foreign Ministry officials said. The U.S. side included Secretary of State Marco Rubio as well as Kellogg.

On Thursday, Rubio said he believed a breakthrough was only possible is a meeting between Trump and Putin.

___ Cook reported from Brussels. Associated Press writers Aamer Madhani in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Llazar Semini in Tirana, Albania, contributed.