Putin ready for direct talks with Ukraine, spokesperson says

The Kremlin says it is open to direct talks with Ukraine but has declined to back Kyiv’s proposal to extend the Easter ceasefire. While rare, it is not unprecedented for Putin to suggest direct talks with the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Speaking on Tuesday in Kyiv, Zelenskyy said Ukraine was ready to hold direct talks with Russia “in any format”. Russia has frequently claimed it was open to talks with Ukraine but that Kyiv made that legally impossible under a 2022 decree barring negotiations with Putin. The Kremlin on Tuesday also warned that negotiators were unlikely to obtain a swift breakthrough in peace talks on the war.