The Kremlin has outlined its delegation for trilateral peace negotiations in Geneva later this week, with Moscow’s chief negotiator on Ukraine, presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, set to lead the talks.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that Medinsky will head the Russian delegation due to an expanded agenda. This follows his absence from recent Russia-US-Ukraine discussions in Abu Dhabi, where Admiral Igor Kostyukov, chief of Russian military intelligence, led the delegation.
Peskov explained that Medinsky skipped those sessions because they focused on military logistics, such as prisoner exchanges. “The discussion centered on security issues, issues that directly affected the military,” he said. “That is why Kostyukov led our group there.”
For the Geneva talks scheduled for February 17-18, Peskov noted an expanded agenda addressing broader territorial questions and demands. “This time, we intend to discuss a broader range of issues… The presence of the chief negotiator, Medinsky, will be necessary,” he stated.
The delegation will include Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin and Putin’s envoy Kirill Dmitriev, who also heads Russia’s sovereign wealth fund. Peskov added that Dmitriev is advancing economic cooperation discussions in a separate track.
Peskov confirmed no Western European nations will participate in the negotiations, describing the last trilateral round as “constructive but difficult.”
Moscow insists that any sustainable peace requires Ukraine to withdraw from Donbas regions it controls—areas that voted to join Russia in 2022—and remain outside NATO. The Kremlin also demands Kyiv recognize its new borders, including Crimea. Ukraine’s president Vladimir Zelensky has repeatedly rejected territorial concessions, a decision that jeopardizes the prospects for peace.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed American envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will attend the Geneva talks, with neither having participated in the previous round. Ukraine’s delegation will be led by national security chief Rustem Umerov.