Ukrainian, Russian and US officials gathered for a first day of peace talks at the Intercontinental Hotel. The discussions, kept tightly under wraps, are set to continue on Wednesday. French and British delegations were also in town.
Peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine brokered by the United States kicked off in Geneva on Tuesday afternoon amid cautious expectations and a wave of attacks launched both by Ukraine and Russia on the eve of the talks. The discussions, which are being held at the Intercontinental Hotel and run until Wednesday, face a complex backdrop from the outset, with both sides still far apart on key areas.
Little has been revealed about the agenda of the negotiations, kept tightly under wraps by all parties. In a post on X as the talks began, Ukraine’s lead negotiator Rustem Umerov said “security guarantees and humanitarian issues” were on the agenda, adding that his delegation would work “constructively, focused and without excessive expectations”.
The first round of political discussions, which ran from 2 pm until 6 pm, concluded without any declarations from the participants. They are set to resume at the same venue on Wednesday.
Reporters wait outside the Intercontinental Hotel as Russia-Ukraine talks begin in Geneva, 17 February. (Geneva Solutions/Michelle Langrand)
Territorial concessions
One of the major divides concerns Moscow’s demands for Ukraine to cede territory seized by Russian forces and further withdraw from the parts of the Donbas it still controls – a red line for Kyiv. Ahead of the talks, the Kremlin said the issue of territory would figure in the talks without entering into any specifics. Another sensitive issue is the fate of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, seized by Russian forces in March 2022.
According to an anonymous source quoted by the Associated Press, military chiefs from the US, Russia and Ukraine would delve into the mechanics of how to implement a ceasefire after a peace deal was reached, an issue that had been addressed at previous round of talks in Abu Dhabi. But Russian spokesperson Dmitry Peskov cautioned against optimism on the first day.
US pressures for a deal
While the content of the discussions remains fuzzy, a photo published by the Swiss hosts and shared on social media was revealing. US envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff are seen sitting at the head of a U-shaped row of tables, flanked to the right by the Russian delegation. Swiss federal councillor Ignazio Cassis, also at the centre, sits next to the Ukrainian delegation, depicting the widening gap between the US and its historical ally.
Hours before the talks, US president Donald Trump, who described the talks as “big”, urged Kyiv to “come to the table fast”. The US leader has been pressuring Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy to wrap up a deal quickly and hold elections before the summer – and mid-term US elections.
Sidelined from the talks, Kyiv’s European allies are also seeking to have their say. A British delegation, led by prime minister Keir Starmer’s security adviser Jonathan Powell, was spotted at the venue of the talks in the morning to meet with US envoys ahead of the negotiations, according to UK and Russian media reports. A French delegation is also in Geneva, a diplomatic source confirmed. Discussions are expected to resume tomorrow.