Geneva, February 17, 2026 – The Europe Today: A third round of U.S.-brokered peace talks between Russia and Ukraine was set to begin in Switzerland on Tuesday, with expectations of a breakthrough remaining low as hostilities intensify on both sides.
The negotiations come against the backdrop of a major escalation in aerial attacks. Ukrainian authorities reported that at least three people were killed and nine injured overnight after Russian forces launched approximately 400 drones and 30 missiles targeting 12 regions, including the port city of Odessa. Officials described the damage to power infrastructure as “incredibly serious,” warning that repairs could take months.
Moscow, meanwhile, claimed that Ukraine launched around 150 drones targeting sites inside Russia, with one attack reportedly setting an oil refinery ablaze.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha described the latest strikes as evidence of “the extent to which Russia disregards peace efforts.” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov sought to temper expectations for the talks, stating that no one “should expect any news today.”
Russia’s delegation is being led by presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, while Ukraine is represented by National Security Advisor Rustem Umerov. The United States is mediating the discussions through Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump.
The Switzerland meeting, scheduled to run through Wednesday, follows two previous rounds held in Abu Dhabi in January and earlier this month. Those sessions failed to produce progress on key issues, including Moscow’s territorial demands and Kyiv’s insistence on robust security guarantees to deter future aggression.
The Ukrainian side has reportedly expressed concern over Medinsky’s return to lead the Russian delegation, viewing him as a hard-line ideologue whose previous negotiating stance emphasized Russia’s willingness to prolong the conflict indefinitely.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned Monday that it would be “a big mistake to allow the aggressor to take something” and urged Washington to prioritize resolving the issue of security guarantees. Negotiations remain stalled over Russia’s demand that any agreement exclude Western military forces on Ukrainian territory.
Part of a peace framework reportedly under discussion involves Ukraine withdrawing troops from contested areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions — collectively known as the Donbas — to create a demilitarized “economic” zone. The proposal stems from diplomatic efforts initiated during Trump’s summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska in August, which aimed at securing a cease-fire but resulted instead in a preliminary understanding focused on territorial concessions in exchange for security assurances.
As the third round of talks opens, continued military escalation on both sides underscores the fragile and uncertain path toward any durable resolution of the conflict.
