Main points
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed concern over Volodymyr Medinsky's participation in the peace talks in Geneva.
- Previous talks in Abu Dhabi were more productive, as they managed to agree on monitoring the ceasefire using UAVs.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke about the current negotiations in Switzerland / AP, Evgeniy Maloletka, illustrative
The Russian delegation in Geneva was led by Volodymyr Medinsky. In response, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed concern about Moscow's possible intention to bring peace talks to a standstill.
In this way, Russia may try to buy more time for the occupiers on the front line, the Ukrainian leader said in an interview with Axios.
What did Zelensky say about Medinsky?
An aide to Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, Vladimir Medinsky, who heads the Russian delegation at the trilateral talks in Geneva, is known for his, as Sergey Kyslytsia noted, long “pseudo-historical digressions.”
For example, a Russian official declared that Moscow was “ready to fight forever,” referring to the war with Sweden, which lasted 21 years in the 18th century. According to the president, Medinsky likes to mention the “historical roots” of the war.
We don't have time for all this shit. So we have to decide and we have to end the war,
– said Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
According to the president, the previous talks held in Abu Dhabi were more productive, when they agreed on a mechanism for monitoring the ceasefire using UAVs under US leadership if it is achieved.
Citing sources, the publication reports that despite the progress of the “military group” at the talks in Geneva on February 17, negotiations in the political group “stuck” due to the positions of the aforementioned Volodymyr Medinsky.
By the way, Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov had earlier stated that during the talks in Switzerland, the parties would discuss a wider range of issues compared to Abu Dhabi, in particular, they would raise territorial issues.
What is known about the talks in Geneva?
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The Ukrainian delegation included Rustem Umerov, Kyrylo Budanov, Andriy Hnatov, David Arakhamia, Serhiy Kyslytsia, and Vadym Skibitsky. The team was formed taking into account military, political, and security components.
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US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff reported after the first day of negotiations that Ukraine and Russia agreed to share information with their leaders and continue working to reach an agreement to end the war.
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The next meeting will begin in the early hours of February 18. This information is also confirmed by Russian media sources. They specify that the peace talks will begin at approximately 10:00 a.m. Kyiv time.