GENEVA — Ukraine and Russia wrapped the first of two days of U.S.-mediated peace talks in Geneva after a night of Russian airstrikes that battered Ukraine’s energy grid, with President Donald Trump publicly pressing Kyiv to move quickly toward a deal to end the four-year war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the overnight attacks severely damaged the power network in the southern port city of Odesa, leaving tens of thousands without heat and water. “We are ready to move quickly toward a worthy agreement to end the war,” Zelensky said in his nightly address, adding he was awaiting a report from his negotiating team in Geneva.
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Rustem Umerov, Ukraine’s lead negotiator and head of the National Security and Defence Council, said the opening day focused on “practical issues and the mechanics of possible decisions,” without elaborating. He said talks would resume today for a final day.
Russian officials did not comment publicly. But Russian news agencies, citing a source, described the session as “very tense” and said it ran six hours across bilateral and trilateral formats. Both sides agreed to continue discussions today, the source said.
The Geneva meeting followed two U.S.-brokered rounds in Abu Dhabi that ended without a breakthrough as the sides remained far apart on core issues, including control of territory in eastern Ukraine. Russia is demanding that Ukraine cede the remaining 20% of the Donetsk region that Moscow has not captured — a demand Kyiv rejects.
Trump, speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, signaled he expects movement from Ukraine. “Ukraine better come to the table fast. That’s all I’m telling you,” he said. U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner represented the administration in Geneva, crossing town after attending indirect talks with Iranian officials in an unusual bid to juggle two major crises in a single day.
Delegations from several European countries were present in Geneva at Zelensky’s request, according to multiple people familiar with the matter, but they did not join the trilateral peace talks themselves. The Europeans were expected to be briefed by U.S. and Ukrainian officials. Russia has previously opposed European participation.
The stakes around the Geneva peace talks are rising as the fourth anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion approaches on Feb. 24. Tens of thousands of people have been killed, millions have fled their homes, and swaths of Ukrainian cities, towns and villages have been devastated. Russia occupies roughly 20% of Ukraine’s national territory, including Crimea and parts of the Donbas seized before 2022.
Inside Ukraine, the war’s daily toll remained visible as air-raid alerts sent civilians underground. “One shouldn’t trust the Russians absolutely, not even a little,” said Oksana Reviakina, 41, an internally displaced person from the occupied city of Melitopol, while sheltering in a metro station during an alert. Recent strikes on energy infrastructure have repeatedly cut heat and power during a harsh winter, with Odesa among the latest cities hit.
Whether the Geneva talks produce tangible steps remains uncertain. Umerov cautioned against “excessive expectations,” and neither side has indicated flexibility on territorial red lines. Still, the agreement to continue discussions today — under U.S. mediation and with European partners watching closely — keeps a fragile diplomatic channel open as the conflict enters another grueling year.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
