U.S. envoy sees willingness for trilateral talks with Russia and Ukraine

U.S. negotiator Steve Witkoff said weekend meetings in Moscow and Kyiv had produced “substantial progress,” including a willingness to schedule new trilateral talks involving the United States, Russia and Ukraine.

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Substantial progress, including a willingness to schedule new trilateral talks

Witkoff and Jared Kushner met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Sunday and briefed him on their meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin the previous day. They also held talks with representatives of Germany, France and the United Kingdom.

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We also do not rule out resuming the trilateral format, but it is still too early to talk about specific places and dates

A senior Ukrainian official said the U.S. envoys had presented new and more effective proposals to end the war. Zelenskyy, however, warned that fighting would probably continue through the northern winter. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia did not rule out resuming a trilateral format, although he said it was too early to discuss dates or locations.

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Every attempt (...) represents a step toward peace

The last meeting between Russian and Ukrainian negotiators took place in Geneva in February, in talks organized by Washington. The sides failed to agree on territorial issues. The conflict has killed at least 15,000 civilians, according to the United Nations, which says the true number is likely considerably higher. It has also displaced millions and expanded into a wider drone war. U.N. human rights chief Volker Turk called for an urgent ban on fully autonomous weapons after reports that such drones were killing people in Ukraine.

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We are coordinating our next steps. We are preparing the next meetings and communications