US President Donald Trump spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as Ukraine prepares for a meeting between its lead negotiator and US officials in Geneva.
US President Donald Trump is holding a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as preparations continue for fresh trilateral negotiations with Russia, Axios reported on Wednesday.
Kyiv announced that lead Ukrainian negotiator Rustem Umerov will meet US envoy Steve Witkoff in Geneva on Thursday, ahead of the planned talks expected in early March. The discussions are part of ongoing efforts led by the United States to broker an end to Russia’s four-year invasion of Ukraine.
“Tomorrow he will meet with American negotiators Witkoff and [Jared] Kushner,” Zelenskyy told reporters, adding that the meeting is in preparation for the trilateral session with Russia. Other agenda items include prisoner-of-war exchanges and a “prosperity package” for Ukraine’s reconstruction, he said.
Despite multiple rounds of negotiations, progress has been limited. Moscow insists on full control over Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, while Kyiv has refused any deal without security guarantees to prevent future aggression.
Umerov’s adviser told reporters separately that the meeting on Thursday will be in Geneva, which hosted talks with Russian, Ukrainian, and US officials earlier this month.
Other issues on the agenda for Thursday are prisoner-of-war exchanges and a “prosperity package” for the reconstruction of Ukraine, Zelensky said.
Witkoff confirmed the talks earlier this week saying the aim was to “explore different iterations about how we might get to a peace deal.”
United States has been pushing for an end to the war that has entered its fifth year and which has killed tens of thousands and destroyed much of eastern and southern Ukraine.
Moscow and Kyiv remain at odds over who gets what land in a post-war settlement.
With inputs from agencies
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