Zelensky Publishes Open Letter to Putin Proposing Face-to-Face Meeting, Full Ceasefire During Talks — Day 1,562

On June 4–5, 2026 (Day 1,562), President Volodymyr Zelensky published an open letter to Vladimir Putin proposing a face-to-face meeting in a neutral country — suggesting Switzerland, Turkey, or Arab states as possible venues. Zelensky called for a full ceasefire for the duration of negotiations and insisted that EU leaders must be present at the talks, framing European security as inseparable from any peace settlement. He challenged Putin to set a concrete date for the meeting. The full text of the letter was published by the Kyiv Independent. This represents Ukraine's most direct public peace overture to Russia's head of state in over two years of largely stalled negotiations. The letter came days after Ukraine's massive drone strike on St. Petersburg (June 3) — which struck the Kronstadt naval base and oil terminal during SPIEF — and following Russia's June 2 mass aerial assault that killed 22+ Ukrainians. Zelensky's move was seen as an attempt to reframe Ukraine's position diplomatically while maintaining military pressure. US President Trump called a potential Zelensky-Putin meeting 'great.' The proposal reflects a shift in approach: rather than waiting for the US to broker talks, Zelensky appealed directly and publicly to Putin.