Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed direct peace negotiations with Ukraine to be held in Istanbul on May 15, calling for immediate talks aimed at ending the devastating conflict that has gripped Eastern Europe for over three years.

Speaking during a nationally broadcast address from the Kremlin in the early hours of Sunday, Putin stated that the talks should go beyond a temporary ceasefire and focus on “eliminating the root causes of the conflict” and “restoring a long-term, lasting peace.”

“We are proposing that Kyiv resume direct negotiations without any preconditions,” the Russian leader declared. “We offer the Kyiv authorities to resume negotiations already on Thursday, in Istanbul.”

The proposal marks the most prominent Russian diplomatic outreach in recent months and comes amid renewed Western efforts to press for de-escalation in the conflict, which began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The war has resulted in hundreds of thousands of casualties and deepened geopolitical divisions between Russia and the West.

Although Moscow has previously expressed openness to dialogue, it has often attached stringent conditions. Sunday’s proposal signals a potential shift in tone from the Kremlin, possibly aimed at reclaiming the diplomatic initiative at a time when international scrutiny of the conflict is intensifying.

President Putin also revealed plans to speak with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan later on Sunday to seek Ankara’s continued role as a mediator. Turkey had previously hosted rounds of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in 2022, which ultimately collapsed without an agreement.

Accusing Ukraine and its Western backers of putting “personal political ambitions above peace efforts. Our proposal, as they say, is on the table. The decision is now up to the Ukrainian authorities and their curators.”

So far, the Ukrainian government has remained firm in its position that any negotiations must include a full withdrawal of Russian forces and the restoration of Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty. Neither President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office nor the Ukrainian foreign ministry issued an immediate response to Putin’s latest offer.

The Kremlin’s overture follows a sharp uptick in fighting across the eastern and southern fronts, as well as a failed Russian unilateral ceasefire earlier this month that Kyiv dismissed as a “theatrical show” amid continued military strikes.