Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday dismissed Russia’s ceasefire proposal as “an ultimatum” and renewed his call for direct talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin to break the deadlock over the war, which has dragged on for nearly 3½ years. Putin, however, showed no willingness to meet with Zelenskyy, expressing anger Wednesday about what he said were Ukraine’s recent “terrorist acts” on Russian rail lines in the Kursk and Bryansk regions on the countries’ border. “How can any such (summit) meetings be conducted in such circumstances? What shall we talk about?” Putin asked in a video call with top Russian officials. He accused Ukraine of seeking a truce only to replenish its stockpiles of Western arms, recruit more soldiers and prepare new attacks like those in Kursk and Bryansk. Both sides exchanged memorandums setting out their conditions for a ceasefire for discussion at Monday’s direct peace talks between delegations in Istanbul, their second meeting in just over two weeks. Zelenskyy had previously challenged Putin to meet him in Turkey, but Putin stayed away. Russia and Ukraine have established red lines that make a quick deal unlikely, despite a U.S.-led international diplomatic push to stop the fighting. The Kremlin’s Istanbul proposal contained a list of demands that Kyiv and its Western allies see as nonstarters. ‘This document looks like spam’ Zelenskyy said that the second round of talks in Istanbul was no different from the first meeting on May 16. Zelenskyy described the latest negotiations in Istanbul as “a political performance” and “artificial diplomacy” designed to stall for time, delay sanctions and convince the United States that Russia is engaged in dialogue. “The same ultimatums they voiced back then — now they just put them on paper … Honestly, this document looks like spam. It’s spam meant to flood us and create the impression that they’re doing something,” Zelenskyy said in his first reaction to the Russian document. He added that the 2025 talks in Istanbul carry “the same content and spirit” as the fruitless negotiations held in the Turkish city in the early days of the war. The Ukrainian leader said that he sees little value in continuing talks at the current level of delegations. Defense Minister Rustem Umerov led the Ukrainian delegation in Istanbul, while Vladimir Medinsky, an aide to Putin, headed the Russian team. Zelenskyy said he wants a ceasefire with Russia before a possible summit meeting with Putin, possibly also including U.S. President Donald Trump, in an effort to remove obstacles to a peace settlement. The U.S. has led a recent diplomatic push to stop the full-scale invasion, which began on Feb. 24, 2022. “We are proposing … a ceasefire before a leaders’ summit,” with the U.S. acting as a mediator, Zelenskyy told a media briefing in Kyiv. “Why a ceasefire before the leaders’ meeting? Because if we meet and there is no mutual understanding, no willingness or vision on how to end this, then the ceasefire would end that same day. But if we see readiness to continue the dialogue and take real steps toward de-escalation, then the ceasefire would be extended with U.S. mediation guarantees,” he said. Ukraine is ready to meet at any time from next Monday at a venue such as Istanbul, the Vatican or Switzerland, Zelenskyy said. U.S. defense secretary stays away A second round of peace talks on Monday between […]