Ukraine has proposed new peace talks with Russia next week, a new diplomatic initiative by the Eastern European country after talks stalled last month.

Al Jazeera reported this information in a report on Sunday (July 20).

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a video message on Saturday that the new head of the National Security and Defense Council, Rustem Umerov, had made the proposal to his Russian counterpart. “Everything that is necessary to achieve a ceasefire must be done,” he said. “Russia must make a decision, there is no room for hiding.”

Zelensky also reiterated his interest in meeting directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He said, "A leadership-level meeting is necessary to ensure peace, this is what is needed for lasting peace."

Russia has not yet officially responded to this issue.

Al Jazeera reports that former Defense Minister Rustam Umarov was recently appointed head of the National Security and Defense Council, tasked with accelerating peace talks.

He previously led the Ukrainian delegation to two peace talks in Turkey. Those talks made some progress, mainly on the exchange of prisoners and dead soldiers. However, the conditions that Russia put forward to Ukraine at that time — the ceding of four regions to Russia and the rejection of Western military assistance — were completely unacceptable to Kiev.

Earlier on Friday, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow agreed with Zelensky's comments that peace talks should be accelerated. Analysts see this as a strategic softening of Russia's position.

In particular, the new pressure that US President Donald Trump has put on Russia is believed to have an impact on this change in position.

Last week, Trump gave Moscow 50 days to reach a ceasefire or face 100 percent tariffs on Russian goods, and threatened to impose "secondary sanctions" on those who buy Russian oil.

He has also promised to send more weapons to Ukraine. However, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova called the condition “blackmail from Washington,” saying, “It shows that Ukraine does not really want peace, but wants to continue the war.”

Al Jazeera says the new talks offer comes at a time when violence between the two sides on the battlefield is not abating. Russia carried out a major drone attack on the port of Odessa in southern Ukraine early Saturday, killing at least one person and wounding six.

Zelensky said that Russia fired more than 30 missiles and 300 drones across Ukraine that night, affecting 10 regions. Meanwhile, Ukraine launched a drone strike in the Rostov region of Russia, injuring a railway worker and forcing train services to be suspended for four hours.

Drone attacks were also repelled in the skies of the Russian capital Moscow, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said. This forced the suspension of flights at Vnukovo and Domodedovo airports for some time. The Russian Defense Ministry claimed that it destroyed 27 Ukrainian drones between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Saturday.