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The Kremlin has rejected claims that preparations are underway for three-way talks involving Russia, Ukraine, and the United States, as diplomatic efforts to end the war continue in the United States.
The denial came as Ukrainian, European, and Russian envoys gathered in Miami for separate negotiations mediated by Washington.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s foreign policy adviser, Yuri Ushakov, said on Sunday that the idea of trilateral talks had not been seriously discussed and was not being prepared.
His comments followed remarks by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a day earlier, in which he said the United States had suggested a three-way format that would mark the first direct contact between Moscow and Kyiv in six months.
Zelenskyy, however, expressed doubt that such talks would yield meaningful results.
Speaking to journalists on Saturday, Zelenskyy said he was sceptical that anything new would come from a trilateral meeting and urged Washington to increase pressure on Moscow to bring the war to an end.
On Sunday, he struck a more optimistic tone about ongoing discussions between Ukrainian, European, and US negotiators, saying talks were progressing at a “fairly rapid pace.”
He cautioned, however, that any breakthrough depended on whether Russia genuinely wanted to end the conflict.
Zelenskyy added that Russia continued to send negative signals, citing ongoing assaults along the front line, alleged war crimes in border areas and persistent strikes on Ukrainian infrastructure.
In a post on X, he said Ukraine had endured a wave of attacks recently, particularly in the south and around the Odesa region.
Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev arrived in Miami on Saturday, where Ukrainian and European delegations have also been present since Friday.
The talks are being mediated by US special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Ushakov said Dmitriev would return to Moscow to brief the Kremlin, after which Russia would decide on the next steps.
Ushakov also told reporters that he had not seen the latest version of a revised US proposal aimed at ending the conflict.
Washington last month surprised Kyiv and its European allies by presenting a 28-point peace plan that was widely seen as favouring Russia’s key demands.
The proposal has since been redrafted following input from Ukraine and European partners.
While details of the revised plan remain unclear, Ukraine is expected to face pressure to concede some territory in exchange for US security guarantees, a prospect that has caused deep resentment among many Ukrainians.
Russian forces have made gradual gains along the eastern front in recent months, with Putin praising those advances on Friday and warning of further offensives in the weeks ahead.
The last direct talks between Ukrainian and Russian officials took place in Istanbul in July, resulting in prisoner exchanges but little progress towards ending the fighting.
The presence of Russian and European representatives in Miami marks a shift from earlier efforts, when US officials held separate talks with each side.
Relations between Moscow and Kyiv remain deeply strained after nearly four years of the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War II, casting doubt on the prospects for direct negotiations.
Russia has also argued that European involvement complicates the process rather than helping it.
Despite this, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an interview published on Sunday that Putin was open to holding talks with French President Emmanuel Macron.
Macron had spoken several times with Putin before and during the early months of the war in an effort to persuade him to halt the invasion.
Peskov said Putin had expressed readiness to engage in dialogue with the French leader, adding that any such talks would be positive if there was mutual political will.
Macron’s office responded by welcoming the signal but stressed that any discussions with Moscow would take place in full transparency and in coordination with Zelenskyy and European allies.
Meanwhile, the fighting on the ground has continued.
Zelenskyy said Russia had launched around 1,300 attack drones, nearly 1,200 guided aerial bombs and nine missiles of various types against Ukraine over the past week.
Russia, for its part, claimed on Saturday to have captured two villages in the Sumy and Donetsk regions, while Ukraine said it had destroyed two Russian fighter jets in occupied Crimea.
