Amid pressures to find a path to peace, Russia has proposed a second round of direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on Monday, June 2, to deliver a memorandum with Moscow's conditions.
However, Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov has requested that the Kremlin deliver the document to Kiev before the meeting to allow for study and ensure that these new contacts yield concrete results.
Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio conveyed President Donald Trump's directive to Moscow, urging "constructive and good-faith dialogue with Ukraine as the only way to end" the war.
Russia Amasses forces in Kursk to intensify offensive on Sumy, according to kyiv
The Russian Army is accumulating "a large number" of troops in the Kursk region of the Russian Federation to intensify its offensive on the Ukrainian border region of Sumy, as warned on Thursday by Ukrainian Border Guard spokesperson Andrii Demchenko.
"The enemy has a really large amount of forces and military equipment in the Kursk region," Demchenko stated on television, as reported by Ukraine's public news agency Ukrinform.
The Ukrainian border guard spokesperson added that the number of troops deployed by the Kremlin in Kursk - from where Ukrainian forces occupying part of the territory have been almost completely expelled in recent weeks - changes "periodically," and stated that Russia "has enough forces in that area" to carry out new offensive operations against Sumy.
Russia seeks legally binding mechanisms for peace in Ukraine
As part of its peace proposals, Russia seeks legally binding mechanisms to ensure that the conflict in Ukraine will not resume, as reported on Thursday by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the state news agency TASS.
Russia intercepts 48 Ukrainian drones
Russian air defenses intercepted 48 Ukrainian drones overnight, with 30 of them over the Belgorod region, as reported on Thursday by the Russian Ministry of Defense.
US calls for "Good-Faith" dialogue with Russia
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasized to his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, that the only way to end the war in Ukraine is through a "good-faith" dialogue with Kiev.
The State Department stated in a release that Rubio praised the exchange of 1,000 prisoners by both sides over the weekend and reiterated President Trump's call for that "constructive and good-faith" dialogue as the "only way" to peace.
On the same day, the Republican leader expressed being "very disappointed" with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, and set a deadline of about two weeks to determine if the Kremlin leader truly intends to cease the conflict.
Kiev requests Moscow to share its conditions
Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov requested Russia last night to deliver the memorandum with the Kremlin's conditions for advancing negotiations, after Moscow proposed a new meeting on Monday in Istanbul, so that the Ukrainian side can study the document in advance and ensure that these new contacts yield concrete results.
"We do not oppose more meetings with the Russians and hope for their 'memorandum,' so that the meeting is not empty and we can truly move towards the end of the war," Umerov wrote. He explained that Kiev has already delivered to Moscow the document defining its position and added that "the Russian side has at least four more days before their departure (to Istanbul) to deliver the document to Ukraine for analysis.