A very tense negotiation session between Russians and Ukrainians in Geneva… It lasted 6 hours without an agreement

The Russians and Ukrainians held a US-brokered negotiating session in Geneva on Tuesday aimed at ending four years of fighting in Ukraine, which has been characterized by high tensions, a source close to the Russian delegation said, confirming that talks would continue on Wednesday.

The source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters that the talks were very tense… It lasted six hours… It’s now over… It was agreed to continue it tomorrow”.

The three delegations held closed-door talks at the Intercontinental Hotel, while representatives from Germany, France, the United Kingdom and Italy came to Geneva.

An Italian government source said that talks scheduled for the day will be held between European officials and the Ukrainian and US delegations on the sidelines of the negotiations.

A source familiar with the talks said there were members of the Elysée diplomatic cell in Geneva.

On the level of talks between representatives of Russia, Ukraine and the United States, the head of the Ukrainian delegation, former Defense Minister Rustam Umarov, said that security and humanitarian issues are on the agenda, noting that the work is being carried out constructively and away from excessive expectations.

The negotiations are based on a US plan announced months ago, and the issue of Kyiv making concessions related to areas of territory in exchange for security guarantees is still the focus of discussions.

Negotiations are particularly stalled over the fate of the Donbas industrial basin in eastern Ukraine.

Moscow is demanding the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from the Donetsk region, which Kyiv refuses.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov warned that the remaining issues were significant and that no one could predict the outcome of the negotiations in Geneva.

Hours before the start of the talks in Geneva, Russia launched heavy strikes on Ukraine, launching 396 drones overnight, 367 of which were intercepted and 29 missiles were intercepted, according to Ukraine’s air force.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said, “This is a calculated blow to cause the greatest possible damage to our energy sector,” denouncing what he called Russia’s “contempt for peace efforts”.

He said 12 districts were targeted in the attack, which injured nine people and deprived tens of thousands of people of water or heating in the midst of winter in Odesa, Ukraine’s largest city.

As part of the pressure on Kyiv, and in light of the negotiations being conducted by the United States, Russia has been intensifying its strikes targeting Ukrainian infrastructure for weeks.

Three workers at a thermal power plant were killed on Tuesday in a Russian drone strike near the industrial city of Slovyansk, Ukrainian authorities said.

On the other hand, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Tuesday morning that it had shot down more than 150 Ukrainian drones that were targeting several regions, including the Black Sea region.

The talks in Geneva are the continuation of two rounds of negotiations held in Abu Dhabi in which no real progress has been made.

From his part, US President Donald Trump has been pushing for a political solution to the conflict, which erupted in Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

“It’s better for Ukraine to come to the negotiating table, quickly,” Trump told reporters on Monday.

Trump last week called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to act, stressing that Russia wants to make a deal.

Zelensky has repeatedly questioned the Kremlin’s desire for a political solution.

“Even on the eve of the trilateral meetings, the Russian military has only received instructions to continue striking Ukraine,” he wrote on social media on Monday, adding that “this says a lot about Russia’s view of diplomatic efforts”.

“Only sufficient pressure on Russia and clear security guarantees for Ukraine will make it possible to end this war,” he said.

On Saturday, at the Munich Security Conference, Zelensky ruled out ceding parts of its territory to Russia, which in the middle of this month-controlled 19.5% of Ukrainian territory.

“Quite simply, we can’t withdraw from our territory, or swap part of it for another, that’s crazy,” he said.

In recent months, Russia has launched a series of heavy raids that have destroyed Ukraine’s energy grid in the harsh winter.

Political scientist Tatiana Stanovaya said that the choice of a Kremlin adviser, national historian Vladimir Medinsky, to lead the Russian delegation in Geneva translates into the return of political conditions to the forefront of discussions.

Russia has previously called for a reduction in the number of Ukrainian troops and Ukraine has vowed not to join NATO.

Zelensky on Tuesday touched on the fate of Ukrainian children who have been transferred to Russia, saying that Kyiv has repatriated 2,000 of them since the beginning of the war, but that thousands more are still on Russian territory and in occupied territories.