Counter question: Switzerland is ready to hold a new round of negotiations on Ukraine

The Swiss authorities can promptly organize new negotiations on the Ukrainian settlement, the country's Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis told Izvestia. According to him, the confederation is ready not only to provide a platform, but also to accompany discussions between Moscow and Kiev. The last meeting so far was held on February 17-18 in Geneva in the format of Russia – USA – Ukraine, before that the parties had met twice in the UAE. The day before, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced the possibility of organizing talks between Moscow and Kiev. Experts believe that Istanbul is most suitable for Russia. However, new meetings on Ukraine should not be expected in the near future, since Iran and Cuba are occupying all the attention of the United States, Kiev is not fulfilling Moscow's demand for the withdrawal of troops from Donbass, and the Russian Federation does not yet see any point in meeting with representatives of Ukraine in a bilateral format.

When will the negotiations on Ukraine continue

Switzerland is ready to host the next round of negotiations on the settlement of the conflict in Ukraine, the confederation's Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis told Izvestia. Moreover, Bern can not only provide a platform, but also participate in the settlement process.

— We are very proud to have hosted the trilateral meetings in February, and we remain at the disposal of both sides to continue to contribute in every possible way to a peaceful settlement. But it's up to Russia and Ukraine to decide. We are ready to receive them every day and do everything in our power. Not only in terms of providing a platform, but also on the substance of issues to accompany and support discussions, but only if the parties want it," the diplomat stressed.

It was in Geneva on February 17-18 that the last meeting in the Russian Federation—USA—Ukraine format took place. However, Switzerland only provided a platform at that time, but did not participate in the negotiations itself. In other words, Bern is now interested in becoming a participant in the discussions if Moscow and Kiev wish.

Prior to that, in January and February, the parties held two rounds of negotiations in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi. At the same time, after negotiations in Switzerland in February, information appeared that Moscow insists on returning negotiations to the UAE. The main reason is that the Russian Federation does not consider Switzerland as a neutral player who can act as a mediator in the negotiations, Ivan Loshkarev, associate professor of Political Theory at the MGIMO Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia, explained to Izvestia.

However, the scenario of holding the next round of talks in the UAE has now also become unlikely due to the conflict over Iran. Therefore, the authorities of Turkey, another country where discussions on Ukrainian issues took place, became more active. According to Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Ankara is ready to organize negotiations between Russia and Ukraine both on technical issues and at the highest level.

Channel without communication: Russia sees no prospects for direct dialogue with Ukraine

Why the United States may reduce its interest in resolving the conflict in Eastern Europe

Moscow does not consider the resumption of negotiations on the Ukrainian settlement to be a priority, but it is positive about the possibility of holding them in Turkey, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said during a speech at the Antalya Diplomatic Forum.

— Turkey still looks like the most suitable place to resume Russian-Ukrainian negotiations, given that it has become unsafe to hold them in the monarchies of the Persian Gulf today. Ankara itself seems to be a reliable intermediary to a certain extent, since it maintains working channels with both Kiev and Moscow," Tigran Meloyan, an analyst at the HSE Center for Mediterranean Studies, told Izvestia.

It was in Turkey that negotiations on the Ukrainian settlement took place in 2022. The parties reached an agreement on almost all points, but then Ukraine abandoned the agreements due to the actions of Western countries, especially Great Britain. Last year, the delegations returned to Istanbul again — three rounds of direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine were held here, the United States did not directly participate in them. The group from Russia was headed by Vladimir Medinsky, Assistant to the President of Russia. However, now the resumption of direct negotiations with Kiev is not being considered without the participation of the United States, the Russian Foreign Ministry told Izvestia earlier. American participation is important for potential agreements to be accepted by the entire collective West.

In Abu Dhabi, the meetings were held in a trilateral format with the participation of representatives of the United States, the Russian group was headed by Admiral Igor Kostyukov, Chief of the General Staff's Main Directorate. In Geneva, Vladimir Medinsky once again became the head of the Russian delegation, which included 20 people, including Igor Kostyukov.

Moscow and Kiev disagree on each other's terms

So far, Russia and Ukraine have been able to make progress only in the humanitarian sphere: the sides are exchanging prisoners and bodies of the dead. Literally on April 9, Russia handed over 1,000 bodies of dead soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Kiev — 41 bodies of Russian servicemen. However, Kiev refuses to move on. In particular, he did not respond to Russia's proposal to raise the level of heads of delegations and create working groups on humanitarian, political and military issues.

Despite all the past rounds of negotiations, the positions of Moscow and Kiev rest on the territorial issue, among other things. Russia insists on the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the territory of the DPR controlled by them. Vladimir Putin reported in March that the Ukrainian Armed Forces occupy 15-17% of the republic's territory, although six months ago it was about 25% of the region's area. According to Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the Russian President, the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from Donbass would facilitate the transition to the conflict settlement process by political and diplomatic means.

At the same time, the Trump administration began actively pushing Ukraine to negotiate with Russia after coming to power in January 2025. In August of the same year, the presidents of the Russian Federation and the United States met in Alaska, following which the leaders reached an "understanding" called the "spirit of Anchorage." The American side assures that it remains committed to these principles, Alexei Drobinin, director of the Foreign Policy Planning Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry, said on April 18.

Keeping the pause: when will the negotiations between Russia and Ukraine resume

Moscow is ready for a new meeting with Kiev and Washington, but it is postponed due to the conflict in the Middle East.

However, now the United States is preoccupied with the conflict with Iran, with special envoy to the American president Steve Witkoff and businessman Jared Kushner participating in negotiations.

— A possible operation against Cuba is also on the horizon. It seems to me that Washington will not be interested in Kiev for at least two or three more weeks. Ukraine is not ready to conduct a dialogue with Russia on its own, and it does not change its position on key elements of the settlement," Ivan Loshkarev stressed.

According to him, Ukraine is still relying on the help of the European Union, but without the allocation of a new loan of € 90 billion in May, the country will have problems with the cash budget. Previously, financial assistance was blocked by Hungary. Now, according to Bloomberg, Viktor Orban's outgoing government is ready to lift its veto in exchange for resuming oil supplies via the Druzhba pipeline.

According to Natalia Yeremina, a professor at St. Petersburg State University, negotiations on Ukraine will resume sooner or later, since all parties are interested in this. However, not all participants are ready to conclude an agreement. Thus, Kiev and Brussels are determined to use the negotiation process to gain a respite.

The political scientist expects that Washington's participation will become more noticeable: with the midterm elections approaching in November, Donald Trump needs at least some kind of foreign policy achievement. Russia does not refuse dialogue, but Moscow needs specific agreements. Under these conditions, the Russian Federation continues to achieve its goals by military means, with the expectation that sooner or later pressure will force Ukraine to comply with Moscow's conditions.