Political side of Ukraine-Russia talks stalls in Geneva, Axios reports
Photo: Vladimir Medinsky (Getty Images)
On Tuesday, February 17, the third round of peace talks between Ukraine and Russia took place in Geneva under US mediation. However, negotiations in the political group have "got stuck," according to Axios journalist Barak Ravid.
Two sources said the deadlock was caused by the positions presented by the head of the Russian delegation.
"Two sources with knowledge told me negotiations in the political group in Geneva got "stuck" today. The sources said the reason was the positions presented by the new Russian chief negotiator Vladimir Medinsky," Ravid wrote.
The details of those positions have not yet been disclosed.
Geneva talks and Medinsky's role
The Geneva meeting on February 17–18 marks the third round of trilateral peace negotiations between Ukraine, the US, and Russia.
For this round, Moscow decided to return its longtime negotiator, Vladimir Medinsky, who previously led the Russian delegation in talks in spring 2022 and May 2025.
Medinsky is a key Kremlin ideologist responsible for shaping and spreading a distorted version of history.
In 2025, during the negotiations, Medinsky mainly delivered lectures on Russia’s historical claims to Ukrainian territories, starting from the era of Prince Rurik. For this reason, aside from prisoner exchanges, the talks produced no results on other issues.
Today, both the political and military groups met, but the details are not yet known.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told Axios that Ukraine and Russia must end the war as quickly as possible, emphasizing that there is no time to listen to the philosophical musings of Putin’s aide, Medinsky.
Within Russia, Medinsky oversees the unification of state propaganda and efforts to combat "foreign influence" on historical memory.
According to the Skhemy project, Medinsky curates the creation of Russian history textbooks that justify the occupation of Ukrainian territories. Ideological events are also conducted in Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories via the Russia-controlled Military Historical Society.
For a detailed look at who Vladimir Medinsky is, read the material by RBC-Ukraine.
