Kyiv Preparing for Resumption of Trilateral Talks in October, Senior Official Says

The chief of staff of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday that Kyiv is preparing for trilateral talks with Moscow and Washington to resume in October, aimed at reaching a peace deal to end the Russia–Ukraine war that has dragged on for over 4-1/2-years.

Kyrylo Budanov told reporters on the sidelines of a ​conference in Kyiv that Ukraine was ready to continue the talks after the last round in February stalled when they failed to resolve key issues, such as territory and security guarantees for Ukraine.

Those talks had been held in Geneva. At the time, ​Washington was also focused on the conflict with Iran.

Budanov’s comments were made a week after U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner had visited Russian and then Ukrainian leaders in their respective capitals, with all parties expressing their willingness to resume the face-to-face peace negotiations.

It was the ⁠first such U.S. visit to Moscow since February and the first visit to the ‌Ukrainian capital.

Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters Sept. 5 after the U.S.–Russian meeting that the Americans “outlined a number of ideas regarding possible avenues for a settlement” during the three-hour talks.

“The talks went beyond a mere exchange of views on resolving the Ukrainian crisis. Economic issues and potential major, mutually beneficial Russian–American projects were discussed in some detail,” he said.

Witkoff said Sept. 6 after visiting ​both capitals that both Moscow and Kyiv welcomed the new momentum to ​renew the trilateral talk format.

Kushner said returning to the format would be productive as it allows direct communication among all parties, rather than forcing Washington to act as an intermediary between Moscow and Kyiv.

Zelenskyy said Sept. 6 that the U.S. envoys in Kyiv presented some “very decent, worthwhile ideas.” He noted that the discussion did not include much time discussing Ukraine’s territorial issues, and that he believes such complex issues can only be “resolved at the level of leaders.”

“The main thing is that today, we have the opportunity to discuss everything—security guarantees, and we are indeed talking about Ukraine’s future,” Zelenskyy said of the meeting with Witkoff and Kushner.

He suggested that ⁠the renewed three-sided meeting could be hosted by Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Switzerland, or another country.

President Donald Trump told reporters on Sept. 8 that both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelenskyy were seeking to make a deal to end the war after speaking with the leaders. He said the war continued to cost many young lives: “25,000 last month.”

Major differences on how to end the war remain between the two sides. A key issue is the fate ‌of the remaining Ukrainian-held territory in the eastern Donbas region, which Moscow ⁠has claimed as its own but has failed to capture despite years ​of fierce fighting.

Hostilities resumed between Moscow and Kyiv on Sept. 8 after the three-day ceasefire both sides adhered to during the visit by U.S. envoys. Russia launched attacks in Kyiv, Sumy, Zaporizhzhia, and the Dnipro region, while Kyiv targeted targets on the Crimean peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014 and Ukraine still views as rightfully its own.

Guy Birchall and Reuters contributed to this report.