The president’s comments came after he said Crimea “will stay with Russia,” a position backed by the mayor of Kyiv, who conceded that his country may have to give up territory.

Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday that his country would be ready to hold talks with Russia in any format once a ceasefire deal is in place and the fighting has stopped. Zelenskyy,

Russia said on Monday it was waiting for a signal from Ukraine to say it was willing to hold direct negotiations to end their war, but had not seen any signs of movement. The Kremlin said last Friday that the possibility of direct talks had been raised during a three-hour meeting between President Vladimir Putin and U.