There is no sign of progress in Russia-Ukraine talks as the latest round ends in Geneva
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Recent US talks between envoys from Moscow and Kyiv over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine ended Wednesday with no signs of progress and both sides said talks were “difficult,” as the fourth anniversary of the war approaches next week.
The Swiss talks were the third round of direct talks organized by the US, after meetings earlier this year in Abu Dhabi that officials described as constructive but did not produce much progress. Prospects for significant progress in Geneva were low.
“The talks were not easy,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said after talks broke down and spoke briefly by phone in Kyiv with his negotiating team.
He previously accused Russia of “trying to derail negotiations” while continuing its offensive – an accusation he and European leaders have made repeatedly in the past.
Despite that, there is some progress on military issues, although political tensions remain deep, including the future of land in eastern Ukraine occupied by Russian troops and which Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to keep, Zelenskyy said.
Zelenskyy described the military talks as “constructive,” adding that the militaries of both countries are looking at how to manage any future ceasefire.
“Surveillance will be carried out in cooperation with the American side,” he said in a voice message shared in a WhatsApp group chat.
US President Donald Trump’s ambassador, Steve Witkoff, said on social media that Washington’s campaign for peace in Ukraine over the past year has “brought meaningful progress,” without elaborating.
The two armies are still engaged in war on a 1,250-kilometer front line, and Russia is attacking Ukrainian civilian areas on a daily basis.
Hours after the first day of talks ended on Tuesday, Russian warplanes killed a woman and wounded a six-year-old girl and an 18-month-old baby in the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia, officials said.
Suddenly, Russia launched one ballistic missile and 126 long-range drones into Ukraine, according to the Ukrainian military.
European officials in Geneva, said Zelenskyy
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters it was “too early” to talk about the outcome. Putin has been receiving reports about the progress of the talks, he said.
The head of the Russian delegation, Putin adviser Vladimir Medinsky, told reporters that the two days of talks in Geneva were “difficult but business-like.”
Both sides said there would be a new round of talks.
Zelenskyy said that the Ukrainian and American delegations in Geneva met with representatives of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy and Switzerland. Europe’s participation in the process is “important,” Zelenskyy said.
European leaders, paying close attention to Putin’s wishes, say their security is at risk in Ukraine and insist on talks with them about peace efforts.
Russia and Ukraine appear to be far apart in their demands for a settlement.
Zelenskyy has offered a ceasefire and a face-to-face meeting with Putin, but Moscow wants a comprehensive deal before committing to a deal.
Putin’s main goals remain the ones he announced when Russia attacked its neighbor on February 24, 2022: Ukraine must renounce joining NATO, drastically reduce the size of its army and protect the Russian language and culture in order to keep the country in Moscow’s path.
Additionally, Putin wants Kyiv to withdraw its forces from four regions that Moscow occupies but does not fully control.
Russia controls about one-fifth of Ukraine’s territory, including the Crimean peninsula, which it annexed in 2014, as well as most of the eastern Donbas region, most of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions and parts of four other regions.
Ukraine says it will never accept Crimea, Donbas, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia as parts of Russia.
