UKRAINIAN President Volodymyr Zelensky renewed his offer today to meet Russian leader Vladimir Putin to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine, as delegations from both governments prepared to hold a third round of direct talks.

This followed Russian forces pounding three Ukrainian cities in nighttime attacks that officials said had killed a child.

Mr Putin has spurned Mr Zelensky’s previous offers of a face-to-face meeting to end Europe’s biggest armed conflict since World War II, which began when Russia launched a full-scale invasion on February 24 2022.

But the Ukrainian leader insists that lower-level delegations, such as those expected to meeting for talks in Istanbul today, lack the political clout to stop the fighting when each side's demands remain so far apart.

“Ukraine never wanted this war, and it is Russia that must end [it],” Mr Zelensky said in a Telegram post.

Mr Zelensky’s announcement on Monday night that the negotiations would take place raised little hope that they would deliver progress towards ending the war.

The previous two rounds were held in Istanbul and Russian media reports said that the Turkish city would probably host the latest meeting. The talks in May and June led to a series of exchanges of prisoners of war and the bodies of fallen soldiers but no other agreements.

The war has continued unabated, with Russia driving hard to break through at eastern and north-eastern points on the 620-mile front line. It is also firing upwards of 700 drones a night at Ukrainian cities.

Mr Zelensky said today that, at the next Istanbul talks, Ukraine wanted to secure the release of more prisoners by Russia and the return of allegedly abducted children.

The overnight Russian attacks struck struck the Ukrainian regions of Sumy in the north-east, Odessa in the south and eastern Kramatorsk, wounding at least 24 people as well as killing the child, officials said.