Putin: Russia offers Ukraine to resume direct talks

Russia offers Ukraine to resume direct talks on May 15 in Istanbul, said Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"In this regard, in spite of everything, we suggest that the Kiev authorities resume negotiations that they interrupted at the end of 2022, resume direct negotiations, and without any preconditions. We propose to start without delay next Thursday, May 15, in Istanbul, where they were held earlier and where they were interrupted," Putin said in a statement following a series of international talks in the Kremlin.