Zelenskyy: ‘Unacceptable Peace Terms from Russia – Ready to Meet with Putin and Trump’

The peace terms proposed by Russia during the recent (June 2, 2025) peace talks in Istanbul are ‘unacceptable’ and cannot be accepted by Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy declared today (June 4, 2025). Furthermore, Zelenskyy called for a meeting with Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump while criticizing Russia’s approach to the peace negotiations and its demands for achieving a peace agreement. The Ukrainian leader also assessed that continuing Russia-Ukraine talks in Istanbul with the current delegations would be ‘pointless’ after two rounds of direct peace negotiations that were not particularly fruitful. During the second bilateral meeting, held under Turkish mediation on Monday, the Russian delegation presented Ukraine with a list of maximalist demands from Moscow. These include the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from Ukrainian regions annexed by Moscow, Ukraine abandoning its NATO membership aspirations, and reducing the size of its army. ‘It is an ultimatum sent to us by the Russian side,’ Zelenskyy denounced at a press conference. For talks with Moscow to progress, the Ukrainian leader insists on a ceasefire before discussions and a summit meeting with Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump. ‘We are ready for such a meeting anytime,’ he said, also mentioning the possible presence of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who proposed on Monday a trilateral summit between Putin, Zelenskyy, and Trump. Currently, the Kremlin states that a prerequisite for a Putin-Zelenskyy meeting, the first since 2019, is securing prior ‘agreements’ between Moscow and Kyiv. Zelenskyy ‘downgrades’ peace talks. This position disappoints Kyiv, which sees it as Moscow’s desire to buy time while the Russian army advances against fewer and fatigued Ukrainian forces after three years of Russian invasion. Today, Zelenskyy accused Moscow of conducting these talks merely to please Donald Trump. ‘They did it to secure a delay, personally dependent on President Trump, to know if he will delay or not the implementation of (new) sanctions,’ he estimated. The Ukrainian president is also very critical of the composition of the Russian delegation, led both times by a second-tier presidential advisor, assessing that they are not at the appropriate ‘level’ to decide on a ceasefire, which Kyiv seeks. ‘Continuing diplomatic meetings in Istanbul at a level that does not allow anything to be resolved makes no sense,’ he said. Despite no significant progress, Zelenskyy mentioned today that ‘Moscow announced that this weekend, Saturday and Sunday, it will be able to transfer 500 soldiers,’ and Ukraine will be ready to do the same within a new prisoner exchange.