Russia has proposed a second round of direct talks with Ukraine to discuss a potential peace settlement, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said.
The proposal came as US President Donald Trump expressed concerns his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin may be intentionally delaying negotiations on a ceasefire and expressed disappointment at Russian bombing.
The Ukrainian government is yet to respond to the suggestion of another round of talks, which Mr Lavrov said could be held in Istanbul on June 2.
"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," Mr Lavrov said in a statement.
Under pressure from Mr Trump to end the bloodiest conflict in Europe since World War II, delegates from the warring countries met earlier this month in Istanbul for the first time since March 2022.
Prior to the first meeting, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy challenged Mr Putin to discuss the war face-to-face.
But the Russian president was a no-show at talks, with the Kremlin sending a lower-level delegation instead.
The only concrete outcome from the meeting was an agreement that saw 1,000 prisoners of war swapped at the weekend.
Mr Putin had flagged his intention to work with Ukraine on a memorandum about a peace accord.
Trump backs away from fresh Russia sanctions
The Russian proposal came as Mr Trump on Wednesday expressed hesitation toward imposing new sanctions on Russia over the war in Ukraine, saying he did not want the penalties to interfere with getting a ceasefire.
"If I think I'm close to getting a deal, I don't want to screw it up by doing that," Mr Trump said of further sanctions.
Speaking in the Oval Office, Mr Trump also said Mr Putin may be intentionally delaying negotiations on a ceasefire in the war in Ukraine and expressed disappointment at recent Russian bombing.
"We're going to find out whether or not he's tapping us along or not, and if he is, we'll respond a little differently," he said.
Ukraine, Germany to jointly produce long-range missiles
Germany and Ukraine aim to jointly develop the industrial production of long-range missiles, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced on Wednesday, local time, as he vowed to keep piling on more pressure on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
Speaking during a visit of Mr Zelenskyy to Berlin, Mr Merz said his government would not impose any range limits on the missiles which could be produced in Ukraine and Germany.
"We want to enable long-range weapons, we also want to enable joint production, and we will not speak about details publicly but will intensify cooperation," he said in a joint news conference with Mr Zelenskyy.
Mr Zelenskyy said the two leaders had agreed to cooperate in production in Ukraine of weapons, including drones.
He said government officials had signed agreements on the construction and development of production facilities.
The joint announcement came after Mr Merz earlier this week revealed range limits on Western weapons systems given to Ukraine, including those given from Germany, the US and UK, had been disabled.
The move allows Ukraine to strike deeper into Russian territory.
AP/AFP/Reuters
