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Ukrainian and U.S. officials met in Geneva on Feb. 26 to coordinate positions ahead of a planned new round of trilateral peace talks with Russia.
Axar.az, citing Kyiv Independent, reports that Ukraine’s chief negotiator, Rustem Umerov, said discussions with U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner focused on preparing for the next stage of negotiations Washington hopes to broker in the coming weeks.
The agenda includes Ukraine’s economic recovery — particularly a proposed $800 billion “prosperity package” — as well as potential prisoner exchanges with Russia. The Ukrainian delegation also includes parliamentary leader Davyd Arakhamia and senior economic officials.
The meeting follows unsuccessful trilateral talks held in Geneva on Feb. 17–18 and comes after a phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, during which Trump reiterated his desire to end the war quickly.
U.S. officials aim to organize another round of talks within weeks, possibly leading to a Zelensky–Putin summit.
Major obstacles remain, particularly Russia’s demand that Ukraine cede the entire Donbas region, which Kyiv has rejected, instead calling for a ceasefire along the current front line.
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Trilateral closed-door talks in Geneva on the Ukrainian settlement, involving Russia, the United States, and Ukraine, concluded after six hours.
TASS reported that the meeting, which started at 1:56 p.m. local time (12:56 a.m. GMT), took place at the Hotel InterContinental. The Russian delegation was led by presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky.
Italian diplomatic sources reported that representatives from Italy, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom were also in Geneva.
On the sidelines of the talks, national security advisers from these countries are expected to meet with the US and Ukrainian delegations.