Ukraine-Russia Geneva talks collapse; Zelensky says US pressures Ukraine, not Russia

The third round of U.S.-brokered Russia-Ukraine peace talks took place in Geneva on February 17-18, 2026, mediated by Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law JKJared Kushner. The second day lasted only about two hours before Ukrainian representatives left the table, with Zelensky saying Russia was 'dragging out' negotiations that 'could already have reached the final stage.'

Russia's core demand — that Ukraine formally cede the roughly 20 percent of Donetsk Oblast that Russian forces have not yet captured — was the primary reason talks stalled. Russia's chief negotiator VMVladimir Medinsky called the talks 'difficult but businesslike' while refusing to soften Moscow's territorial maximalism. Ukraine's lead negotiator RURustem Umerov said progress was made on 'practical issues' but the political track remained deadlocked.

President Trump publicly pressured Ukraine before and during the talks, telling reporters aboard Air Force One on February 16: 'Ukraine better come to the table, fast.' He had previously said on February 13: 'Russia wants to make a deal and Zelensky is going to have to get moving. Otherwise, he's going to miss a great opportunity.' Trump directed both comments at Ukraine, not at Russia's negotiating position.

Zelensky made a conditional proposal: Ukraine would pull its troops back from forward positions and allow the creation of a demilitarized buffer zone monitored by international forces, if Russia simultaneously withdrew its forces from equivalent positions. Russia's foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov rejected the framework, insisting Russian police and national guard would remain in Donetsk even under a demilitarized arrangement — effectively nullifying the proposal.

Zelensky told reporters on February 19 that the United States 'too often' asks Ukraine, not Russia, to make concessions. He had made a similar statement at the Munich Security Conference on February 14-15: 'The Americans often return to the topic of concessions and too often those concessions are discussed only in the context of Ukraine, not Russia.' These statements reflect a structural asymmetry in how U.S. pressure has been applied.

One concrete result did emerge from Geneva: agreement on a prisoner-of-war exchange of more than 300 POWs, the first such swap in months. Progress was also made on the 'military track' — discussions about the precise location of the front line and monitoring mechanisms for a potential ceasefire — though no political agreement was reached on how to end the war.

European nations have filled part of the gap left by reduced U.S. military commitment: European military aid rose by 67 percent in 2025 and financial and humanitarian support by 59 percent. A 35-country 'coalition of the willing' led by France and the UK pledged security forces for post-war Ukraine at a January 2026 Paris summit, with French President Macron offering 'several thousand' troops and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer committing to military hubs inside Ukraine in the event of a deal.

The Geneva talks are the latest in a series dating to January 2026 that followed earlier rounds in Abu Dhabi. A Razumkov Centre poll conducted February-March 2025 found that 82 percent of Ukrainians reject formally recognizing Russian control over any occupied territory. Only 5 percent would agree to cede Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, and Crimea to Russia in a treaty. The fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine falls on February 24, 2026.