KYIV: Ukrainian negotiators arrived in the US on Saturday for talks with President Donald Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff, son-in-law Jared Kushner and Army Secretary Dan Driscoll on ending almost four years of war with Russia. The talks — expected to focus on security guarantees and post-war recovery — will take place in Miami as the fourth anniversary of Russia's war looms and as Moscow has pounded Ukraine's energy facilities in a freezing winter.
Russia's advance in east Ukraine gathered pace since autumn, with the Kremlin insisting it will seize the rest of the Ukrainian land it claims as Russian by force if diplomacy fails. Trump has pushed for an end to the war — Europe's worst since World War Two — and expressed frustration with both sides, with no breakthrough on the horizon. He has also pressured Ukraine to accept peace terms that Kyiv says amount to capitulation.
"Arrived in the United States," said Kyrylo Budanov, President Volodymyr Zelensky's new chief of staff and head of the Ukrainian delegation. He posted on social media that he and his team, including security chief Rustem Umerov and negotiator David Arakhamia, would "have an important conversation with our American partners regarding the details of the peace agreement". "A joint meeting with Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, and (US Army Secretary) Daniel Driscoll is planned," he said.
Kyiv is seeking clarity on post-war security guarantees from its allies. Ukraine's ambassador to the US said a day earlier that the talks would focus on security guarantees and post-war reconstruction. Sticking points remain between Kyiv and Washington, with Kyiv seeking clarity on the post-war security guarantees, which it sees as vital to deter Russia from attacking again. Zelensky hopes to sign the documents with the Americans at the World Economic Forum in Davos next week, he told reporters on Friday.
Territory and security guarantees have been at the forefront of remaining questions on a plan to end the war. The UK and France have signed a declaration of intent to deploy troops to Ukraine if there is a ceasefire — but Moscow has rejected that plan, warning any foreign forces would be "legitimate targets" for Moscow.
The Ukrainian team arrived in the US as thousands in Kyiv and the surrounding region braved temperatures dipping as low as -19C with no — or little — heating. Kyiv said on Saturday that 56,000 families in the Bucha area — outside Kyiv where Russian forces committed atrocities in 2022 — were without power after night-time Russian attacks.
Russia and Ukraine on Friday agreed to a localised ceasefire to allow repairs on the last remaining backup power line at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the IAEA said on Friday. Work on the line, which was damaged and disconnected as a result of military activity on January 2, should start "in the coming days", the UN nuclear watchdog said in a statement.
Schools in the Ukrainian capital will be shut until February over health concerns, authorities have said. Ukraine's energy ministry said most regions of Ukraine had power restrictions. "Due to constant massive attacks by the Russian Federation, a state of emergency has been declared in the Ukrainian energy sector," the ministry said. Russia occupies large swathes of southern and eastern Ukraine. It said on Saturday that its forces had captured two more Ukrainian villages — in the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions. — AFP
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