Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Russia changed negotiation team to delay Geneva peace talks

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday that Russia’s decision to change the leadership of its delegation for upcoming peace talks in Geneva appeared to be an attempt to delay progress.

Speaking to journalists on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, Zelenskyy said he was surprised by Moscow’s decision to appoint presidential adviser Vladimir Medinsky to head its team, replacing military intelligence chief Igor Kostyukov, who led previous discussions in Abu Dhabi.

“The surprise is that Russians changed the leader of the group,” Zelenskyy said. “They want to postpone the decisions.”

He expressed hope that Washington would not allow Moscow to restart negotiations from the beginning because of the new delegation.

“I hope that our American partner will not give such possibility to Russians to play with them,” he said.

Security Guarantees and Foreign Troops

Zelenskyy also said Ukraine was close to finalising a framework for long-term security guarantees with international partners.

“We are very close to finalising this project,” he said, noting that the United States had proposed guarantees lasting 15 years. Kyiv, however, is pushing for a longer commitment of 20 years or more.

“We are pushing for 20 years plus, 30 or even 50 years,” he said, adding that investors required long-term stability assurances.

The Ukrainian leader reiterated that foreign troops would be necessary after a ceasefire to deter renewed Russian aggression.

“After ceasefire… we are ready to put troops and the Coalition of the Willing… they have to put troops somewhere,” he said, referring to potential deployments on land, in the air and at sea.

He noted that Russia opposes such an arrangement and questioned why Moscow would resist if it did not intend to resume hostilities.

“If they don’t want to continue the war… why are they afraid?” he asked.

No Territorial Concessions

Zelenskyy rejected the idea of exchanging Ukrainian territory as part of a settlement.

“We can’t withdraw from our territory or exchange our territory, one piece to another piece of our territory,” he said. “It’s something a little bit crazy.”

He added that territorial issues affect not only land but also the lives of residents, saying that around 200,000 people live in the areas concerned.

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Geneva Talks Ahead

Ukrainian, Russian and American delegations are scheduled to meet in Geneva on 17 and 18 February, as U.S. President Donald Trump seeks to broker an agreement to end the war, now in its fourth year.

Zelenskyy said he hoped the upcoming trilateral meetings would be substantive.

“We truly hope that the trilateral meetings next week will be serious, substantive, helpful for all of us,” he said at the Munich Security Conference. “But honestly, sometimes it feels like the sides are talking about completely different things.”

He added that Ukraine was being asked “too often” to make concessions, while accusing Moscow of attempting to delay decisions by changing its lead negotiator ahead of the talks.

Recent rounds of negotiations in Abu Dhabi were described by the parties as constructive but did not produce major breakthroughs.

Zelenskyy called for stronger action from Ukraine’s allies, including increased sanctions on Russia and continued weapons supplies, to ensure that Moscow engages seriously in negotiations.

Asked which member of the U.S. negotiation team he preferred, Zelenskyy responded: “God bless the President of the United States.”

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