By the time Vladimir Putin spoke in a televised address in the early hours of May 11th—bluntly ignoring the ultimatum while offering direct negotiations laden with multiple strings—the moment had lost all clarity.

Kyiv has not responded to the invitation, which comes hours after European leaders urged Moscow to commit to a 30-day ceasefire.

European leaders from Britain, France, Germany and Poland joined Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv in urging Russian President Vladimir Putin to accept a 30-day ceasefire or face more sanctions.