Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has written a letter urging Russian President Vladimir Putin to sit for direct, face-to-face talks to end the Russia-Ukraine war. In an open letter to the Russian president, the Ukrainian leader said it “would be a mistake to wait” for the United States’ attention to return to this European war, and that peace could come only “through direct negotiations” between Ukraine and Russia. The Kremlin confirmed it had received the letter and that its contents would be conveyed to Putin.
The letter was, however, written in a defiant and sarcastic tone, reportedly alluding to Ukraine’s recent strikes on Russian territory. Zelensky noted that “after 26 years in power, age has begun to take its toll on Putin.” “Ukraine is proposing to end this war through direct negotiations between us — between you and me. I am proposing a meeting,” he wrote.
Speaking to foreign journalists in St Petersburg, Putin said he was “certainly ready and willing to reach an agreement with Ukraine,” but added that both sides would have to make concessions. Putin suggested that, since Trump is busy with Iran, the European Union could persuade Zelensky to cede territory. Putin’s long-standing position is that Ukraine must withdraw troops from the four regions Russia partly controls — Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia — and abandon its bid to join NATO. Ukraine has rejected the demand to give up territory, arguing it would embolden Russia to attack again, as it did in 2022 when it launched a full-scale war eight years after seizing Crimea in 2014.
In the letter, more than 1,800 words long, Zelensky wrote: “It is not that we in Ukraine are worried about the fate of Russian soldiers, especially after everything your war has brought to our country. But I am worried about Ukrainians. We are losing our people, and every loss is painful to us.” Zelensky said ordinary Russians had grown weary of Ukrainian drone and missile strikes, an energy crisis, rising prices and the war. “Do not be afraid to take a step toward a way out of this war. That is mainly what is being asked of you now,” he urged. He proposed that the face-to-face talks could be held in a country such as Switzerland or Turkey.
The Ukrainian president’s letter came on a day when Putin was attending a major economic forum in St Petersburg. The previous day, Kyiv had carried out a drone strike on a Russian city — an event Zelensky referred to in his message as a “visit.” Russian-backed authorities also blamed Ukraine for the deaths of four people in the Simferopol area of occupied Crimea, though Ukraine said it had struck a fuel depot. At Thursday’s press conference, Putin expressed doubt about an immediate meeting or agreement, saying: “Whether Zelensky is Ukraine’s legitimate representative is a matter for legal experts and legal analysis.” US President Donald Trump, meanwhile, said the United States had played an important role in bringing the two countries closer to peace talks.
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