Putin proposes direct peace talks with Ukraine after three years of war

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday proposed direct talks with Ukraine on May 15 in Istanbul that he said should be aimed at achieving a durable peace and eliminating the root causes of the war. Putin sent thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022, triggering the gravest confrontation between Russia and the West since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. He said that Russia was proposing direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul in an attempt to "eliminate the root causes