Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday published an open letter to Vladimir Putin proposing the two leaders meet face to face in a neutral country to end a war now in its fifth year. The letter, sent through diplomatic channels to Moscow and Washington, named Switzerland, Turkiye and Arab states as venues and invited Europe and the U.S. into the process.
The overture is Kyiv's most direct public bid for leader-level talks since U.S.-led negotiations stalled this spring, and lands as Washington's attention has swung to the war with Iran. From his showcase economic forum in St. Petersburg, Putin held to the maximalist terms he has carried since an August summit with President Trump in Anchorage.
The proposal
"Ukraine proposes ending this war through direct engagement between us – and you. I am proposing a meeting," Zelenskyy wrote. On the venue: "There are countries that have traditionally hosted leaders to resolve issues of war and peace. Switzerland, Turkiye, the countries of the Arab world – many are able and willing to host such a meeting."
Zelenskyy cast the appeal partly as a warning about strain on the Russian leader, citing inflation, fuel shortages and Ukrainian drone attacks, and noted Putin has spent nearly half of his 26 years in power at war with Ukraine.
The Kremlin response
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin had been informed of the letter but not yet briefed on its contents, and reiterated that Zelenskyy could come to Moscow if he wants talks, an option Kyiv has rejected. Russia, Putin told foreign news agency editors, controls 100 percent of Luhansk, more than 85 percent of Donetsk and 80 percent of Zaporizhzhia, and his troops are advancing. It would be "better to bring the war to an end altogether by agreeing to the compromises that were discussed in Anchorage," he said. He rejected a European mediating role: "Mediation implies neutrality."
Trump's Alaska proposals could "serve as a basis of agreements between Russia and Ukraine and put an end to the conflict," Putin said, if Kyiv accepts them. In Washington, Trump told reporters it "would be great" if the two leaders met.
Congress moves the other way
Hours later, the House passed the Ukraine Support Act, 226-195, authorizing $8 billion in loans to Ukraine and NATO allies and more than $1 billion in additional Ukraine, Baltic and Radio Free Europe funding. Eighteen Republicans joined all but one Democrat, defying GOP leaders who said the bill would undercut White House negotiations. The measure heads to a Senate where backers concede it is unlikely to clear 60 votes without Trump's endorsement.
The counterpoint
Markus Ziener of the German Marshall Fund told Al Jazeera it is highly unlikely Putin accepts while Russia is under military pressure, because direct talks would be read as weakness and would undermine years of Kremlin messaging casting Zelenskyy as illegitimate. Moscow wants a comprehensive settlement, not a pause.
Ukrainian authorities said at least 12 people were killed in Russian strikes Thursday; four died in Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian-held territory. A Ukrainian drone hit an oil terminal in St. Petersburg on Wednesday, hours before the forum opened. The next test is whether Moscow answers in substance, and whether the Senate picks up the House bill.