The leaders of Britain, France and Germany back Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's call for direct ceasefire talks between Russia and Ukraine, they said on Sunday after meeting with him in London.

The leaders "supported the proposal for a direct dialogue between Ukraine and Russia – with active US and European participation – to bring about a ceasefire and support further negotiations," they said in a joint statement with Zelensky

"The current line of contact should be the starting point for negotiations," they added.

"International borders must not be changed by force."

In an open letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday, Zelensky proposed they hold a face-to-face meeting.

"Ukraine proposes ending this war through direct engagement between us," he wrote.

Zelensky met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in London on Sunday.

Kyiv is asking its Western allies for more ammunition deliveries for its anti-air defences as Ukraine endures daily Russian strikes.

The latest strikes killed five people in Ukraine and hit a nuclear storage facility near the Chernobyl disaster site, officials said.

The strike significantly damaged a fuel-reception building metres away from where "large amounts of nuclear material" are stored, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency, which said it had been briefed by Ukraine.

Kyiv's state atomic agency Energoatom said no spent fuel had been stored in the building at the time of the attack. A resulting fire was extinguished, and no injuries were reported.

"An extremely critical infrastructure facility – and an extremely vile Russian strike," Zelensky wrote on X, adding Russia had used a Shahed attack drone.

"As of now, there are no readings exceeding normal background radiation levels. But there is certainly an increase in Russia's brazenness, which long ago went off the charts."

Hundreds of thousands of people have been killed and millions forced to flee their homes since Russia attacked Ukraine in February 2022. (Agencies)



Edited by Cecil Wong