It was the briefest of respites. As soon as US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner left Kyiv, the Russian missiles returned to bomb a city whose depleted air defences are now easier prey to a new generation of faster, more deadly ballistic missiles and drones.
At a press conference in Kyiv on Sunday, Kushner said that on their much-awaited first visit to the Ukrainian capital, they had put forward “new ideas” on how to end the four-year-old conflict, without elaborating. Kyiv and Moscow, where the pair met Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, both claimed the talks were “substantive”.
In truth, the weekend’s significance lay in the fact of resumed US engagement. There is no sign of movement and red lines on both sides remain firmly in place. Further talks were discussed, but Russia remains reluctant. Putin is still adamantly opposed to a ceasefire as a prelude to talks and continues to insist on Ukrainian disarmament and western disengagement. His opposition to foreign peacekeeping troops remains.
Moscow’s territorial demands for control over the whole of the Donbas region, including swathes under Ukraine’s control, are a non-starter for Kyiv . It would reportedly accept a freeze on current Russian battle lines as a temporary recognition of reality, without conceding sovereignty.
The impasse remains, with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy telling journalists that it looks likely the war will continue through the winter, while observers predict major offensives from both sides in the spring.
Importantly, however, the US and Ukrainian teams were joined for the final hour of talks in Kyiv by the national security advisers of Germany, France and Britain, an acknowledgment that European powers have an important role to play.
Under repeated hybrid attack as Moscow tests Nato’s defences, European countries are key suppliers of arms and economic aid to Ukraine, enforcers of sanctions against Russia, provide shelter to millions of Ukrainians, and have promised post-ceasefire peacekeeping troops. No deal will be possible without them at the table.