Kremlin confirms next talks with US and Ukraine
The next meeting between Russian, US and Ukrainian negotiators will take place later this week on February 1, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed on Wednesday.
Speaking to reporters, Peskov confirmed that the meeting will take place on Sunday, but noted that it is a “rough estimate, but that’s what we’re working with for now.” Previously, the date had been the subject of speculation by several media outlets.
The first round of trilateral talks between Moscow, Washington and Kiev took place last week in Abu Dhabi, marking the first time the three sides sat down at the same table. The talks lasted for two days and were hailed as productive, but no specifics have been made public with negotiators noting that a lot more work is to be done.
Peskov had called the beginning of direct contacts as a “positive” step and stated that “a whole range of complex issues related to the settlement” of the conflict were being discussed, which he described as progress.
All three parties have acknowledged that territorial disputes remain the main obstacle to a peace settlement. Moscow maintains that a sustainable deal is only possible if Ukraine withdraws its troops from the regions of Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, and Zaporozhye, which voted to join Russia in 2022, and formally recognizes its neighbor’s new borders, including Crimea. Zelensky has ruled out any territorial concessions.
Putin’s top aide Yury Ushakov, who attended the Abu Dhabi talks, told reporters before the meeting that Russia had the battlefield initiative and would achieve its objectives militarily unless a diplomatic solution is found.
