The Russian president however first expects to see results from direct negotiations between delegations, spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said

Russian President Vladimir Putin is open to holding high-level direct talks with Kiev on resolving the Ukraine conflict, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced on Friday.

However, the Russian leader insists that first, results must be achieved in the negotiations between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations, Peskov explained.

He announced that Russia's team of negotiators is already heading to Istanbul to prepare for the next round of direct talks with Kiev, which is expected to be held on Monday, June 2.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has also confirmed that the Russian team will be in the Turkish city to present the Ukrainian side with Moscow's draft memorandum outlining a path towards a peaceful resolution of the conflict, as well as other ceasefire proposals.

She noted that the talks are expected to be bilateral and stressed that there are no discussions about Trkiye or any other countries mediating the negotiations.

Zakharova also acknowledged that Moscow has heard US presidential envoy Keith Kellogg's statements to the effect that representatives from Washington, London, Paris, and Berlin would be present in Istanbul on June 2. However, she stated that Moscow "does not see any connection" between their arrival and the Russia-Ukraine talks.

Delegations from Moscow and Kiev last met in Istanbul on May 16, marking the first formal negotiations since 2022. That round resulted in the largest prisoner exchange to date, with 1,000 people released by each side. The parties also agreed to prepare written proposals - a pair of memorandums - outlining their positions on a potential ceasefire ahead of the next meeting.

On Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov confirmed that Moscow's memorandum had been completed and proposed holding the next round of negotiations on June 2. 

That statement was met with backlash from Kiev, which said it had already submitted its memorandum to Moscow and criticized the Russian side for not sharing its own document ahead of the talks.

On Thursday, Peskov dismissed Kiev's demand to see the Russian memorandum in advance, calling it "unconstructive." He went on to add that, "They should either confirm they are prepared for talks or say otherwise."