'Ready to engage with Ukrainian side for peace agreement': Putin after call with Donald Trump

"First and foremost, I expressed my gratitude to the President of the United States for the support provided by the United States in facilitating the resumption of direct talks between Russia and Ukraine aimed at potentially reaching a peace agreement and resuming the talks which, as we know, were thwarted by the Ukrainian side in 2022," he said during a media briefing following the call.

The President of the United States shared his position on the cessation of hostilities and the prospects for a ceasefire, Putin said.

"For my part, I noted that Russia also supports a peaceful settlement of the Ukraine crisis as well. What we need now is to identify the most effective ways towards achieving peace," the Russian president said.

"We agreed with the President of the United States that Russia would propose and is ready to engage with the Ukrainian side on drafting a memorandum regarding a potential future peace agreement. This would include outlining a range of provisions, such as the principles for settlement, the timeframe for a possible peace deal, and other matters, including a potential temporary ceasefire, should the necessary agreements be reached," he said.

"Contacts among participants of the Istanbul meeting and talks have resumed, which gives reason to believe that we are on the right track overall," he added.

Ahead of his statement to the media, Trump on Monday announced that Russia and Ukraine will immediately start negotiations towards a ceasefire following his two-hour call with President Vladimir Putin.

Describing his conversation with President Putin as one that went "very well", he said that the negotiations are a significant step towards the "end of the war".

"Russia and Ukraine will immediately start negotiations toward a Ceasefire and, more importantly, an END to the War. The conditions for that will be negotiated between the two parties, as it can only be, because they know details of a negotiation that nobody else would be aware of, Trump said in a post on TruthSocial.

Trump said the "tone and spirit of the conversation were excellent".

"If it wasn’t, I would say so now, rather than later. Russia wants to do largescale TRADE with the United States when this catastrophic “bloodbath” is over, and I agree. There is a tremendous opportunity for Russia to create massive amounts of jobs and wealth. Its potential is UNLIMITED. Likewise, Ukraine can be a great beneficiary on Trade, in the process of rebuilding its Country," he added.

Trump said he has informed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy about the start of negotiations.

Representatives from Ukraine and Russia last week held their first direct talks in more than three years, mediated by Turkey.

Russia had then declined to commit to a ceasefire proposal.

During the talks in Istanbul, Russia repeated broad demands, including its country's control of five regions of Ukraine.