The latest round of peace talks between Ukraine and Russia ended after only two hours without any sign of a breakthrough as President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Moscow of “dragging out” the US-led negotiations.
Zelensky described the ongoing talks at Geneva as “difficult,” with the Ukrainian president alleging that the negotiations concluded quickly on Tuesday because Moscow was eager to keep the fighting going as the war approached its fourth anniversary.
“We can state that Russia is trying to drag out negotiations that could already have reached the final stage,” he wrote on X.
Despite mounting pressure from President Trump to secure a deal, the talks ended without any resolution or set schedule for future negotiations.
“As of today, we cannot say that the outcome of the meetings in Geneva is sufficient,” Zelensky said, suggesting that future talks could take later this month.
The talks have remained stuck on Moscow’s demands for Ukraine to cede all control of the Donetsk fortress belt region, which has successfully fended off Russia’s invasion force for years.
Zelensky has said the Ukrainian people, who would have to vote on any major land concessions, would not allow him to give up such critical territory to Russia.
Both sides have also failed to agree upon the future of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe, which is currently controlled by Russia.
Moscow has demanded full control of the plant, rejecting a Ukrainian proposition for Washington and Kyiv to take over operations.
Trump has said that it’s up to Ukraine to secure a deal quickly, drawing criticism from Zelensky who claimed it was “not fair” for the US to demand Kyiv to make absolute concessions while demanding little of Russia, which started the war.
“Emotionally, people will never forgive this. Never. They will not forgive … me, they will not forgive [the US],” Zelensky said if he were forced to give up Donetsk.
Along with the high-stakes talks in Geneva, Ukrainian officials also met with US military chiefs on Wednesday to discuss US-backed security guarantees to prevent another Russian invasion.
US Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll and Brigadier General Michael Adamski took part in the negotiations.
With Post wires
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: nypost.com
