Ukraine and its European allies have called for Russian President Vladimir Putin to agree to a 30-day ceasefire, which could start as early as Monday, after the leaders of Germany, France, the United Kingdom and Poland arrived in Kyiv on Saturday.

The United States and its European allies are finalising a proposal for a 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine that if refused would see them jointly impose new sanctions on Russia, a French diplomatic source said on Friday.

France’s president, Emmanuel Macron; the new German chancellor, Friedrich Merz; the British prime minister, Keir Starmer; and the Polish prime minister, Donald Tusk, started their visit to Kyiv with a solemn tribute to the thousands of Ukrainian soldiers killed in battle, laying flowers at a makeshift memorial at the heart of the capital.

The leaders of four European countries have arrived in Kyiv as calls intensify for Russia to agree to a monthlong ceasefire in the war

The leaders of Britain, France, Germany and Poland headed to Kyiv on Saturday for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in a show of unity a day after Russia's Vladimir Putin hosted his allies in a Victory Day parade on Red Square.