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Kyiv preparing for talks to resume in October, senior Ukrainian official says
Ukrainian officials say U.S. envoys brought new momentum as Moscow does not rule out peace talks, but key war terms remain unresolved.
On Saturday, Kyrylo Budanov, chief of staff to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said Kyiv is preparing for the resumption of three-sided talks in October aimed at resolving the more than 4-1/2-year-old war with Russia.
U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump's son-in-law, recently visited Moscow and Kyiv in their first such trip since February, generating new diplomatic momentum.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the envoys presented "very decent, worthwhile ideas," and suggested future summits could be hosted by Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Switzerland, or other nations.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow does not rule out peace talks but cautioned it remains too early to confirm when or where such discussions might occur.
Major differences persist between the sides on ending the war, particularly regarding Ukrainian-held territory in the eastern Donbas region, which Moscow claims but has failed to capture despite years of fighting.
The head of the cabinet of the President of Ukraine, Kyrylo Budanov, said today that Kiev is preparing to continue peace negotiations next month, in which Russia and the United States of America are participants.