Overview
- Ukrainian and U.S. delegations met in Geneva on Feb. 26, with Rustem Umerov, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner aligning positions on a large reconstruction package and exploring prisoner-exchange options.
- President Volodymyr Zelensky said the next U.S.–Ukraine–Russia round is expected in Abu Dhabi in early March to finalize security parameters and lay groundwork for a leaders’ meeting.
- Ukrainian negotiators reported major technical progress on military control and verification, including ceasefire definitions, monitoring arrangements and a line of separation, with political approval still required.
- Russia signalled it will not accept deadlines for a deal, and core political disputes over territory, notably control of Donetsk, remain unresolved.
- Hours before the Geneva talks, Russia launched about 420 drones and 39 missiles across Ukraine, highlighting ongoing hostilities as rebuilding needs are estimated in the hundreds of billions of dollars.