MOSCOW — Russia has formally proposed holding the next round of direct peace negotiations with Ukraine in Istanbul on June 2, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced Wednesday, as diplomatic efforts to halt the war intensify under pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump.
Lavrov’s remarks signal Moscow’s willingness to resume dialogue after the previous round of talks—held on May 16 in Istanbul—failed to yield a breakthrough on a ceasefire. That meeting marked the first in-person contact between Russian and Ukrainian delegates since March 2022, just weeks after Russia launched its full-scale invasion.
There was no immediate response from Kyiv regarding the new proposed date.
“We hope that all those who are sincerely, and not just in words, interested in the success of the peace process will support holding a new round of direct Russian-Ukrainian negotiations in Istanbul,” Lavrov said in a statement released Wednesday.
Lavrov’s comments come days after Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke with President Trump on May 19. Following that call, Putin signaled Russia’s readiness to work with Ukraine on a memorandum outlining terms for a future peace agreement.
Moscow has so far refused to agree to an immediate ceasefire, asserting that specific conditions must be met before any truce can take effect. Ukraine and its Western allies have pushed for an unconditional cessation of hostilities, but Russia insists that mutual security guarantees and territorial considerations must first be resolved.
Earlier on Wednesday, Vladimir Medinsky, head of Russia’s negotiating delegation, said he had reached out to Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov with a formal proposal for both the date and venue of the next meeting.
“Let me emphasize: right there, on the spot, we are ready to begin an essential, substantive discussion of each of the points of the package agreement on a possible ceasefire,” Medinsky wrote on the Telegram messaging app.
He added that Moscow expects a formal response from Ceasefire Frameworks Under Discussion
Separately, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said that both sides had agreed to draft their respective proposals for ceasefire and settlement mechanisms ahead of the next meeting. These documents would be exchanged and discussed in Istanbul, she said.
Zakharova’s statement confirms that negotiators plan to focus on what Moscow terms the “modalities of settlement and ceasefire,” signaling a shift toward detailed frameworks that could lead to a broader peace accord—should agreement be reached.
As the war drags into its third year, and with Western leaders growing increasingly vocal about the need for progress, the June 2 meeting could mark a critical moment in determining whether diplomatic channels remain viable for ending Europe’s bloodiest conflict since World War II.
