Ukraine Sets November Date for Trilateral Peace Talks With Russia and US

Ukraine, the United States, and Russia will hold a trilateral meeting in November to restart stalled peace negotiations, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The Ukrainian leader said the summit is intended to address territorial disputes that require leadership-level decisions, while technical groups handle other issues. Zelenskyy stated in a Sunday interview that Kyiv is ready to talk and that all relevant topics can be discussed during the upcoming session.

The president also renewed his demand for a direct meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Zelenskyy believes Putin is the only official in Moscow capable of making the major decisions necessary to end the conflict. The November talks represent a significant shift from previous bilateral formats, bringing Washington into the direct negotiation process with Kyiv and Moscow.

Ukraine has drawn clear boundaries for the discussions. Zelenskyy confirmed that Kyiv will not accept limits on the size of its armed forces or enforced postwar neutrality. This stance aligns with Ukraine’s long-standing goal of joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, despite hesitation from some member states regarding immediate expansion. The exclusion of these two issues from the agenda signals Kyiv’s intent to preserve strategic flexibility in any final agreement.

American support for Ukraine’s air defenses has been fully restored, Zelenskyy reported. The US had warned that Russian ballistic missile strikes were imminent, creating pressure on Kyiv’s defensive systems. SpaceX’s Starshield satellite internet service, which was throttled in early October due to diplomatic friction, resumed operation at speeds up to 420 kilometers per hour on Saturday. This restoration followed a meeting in Oslo between Zelenskyy and US special envoy Steve Witkoff.

The United States continues to push Ukraine to pause its attacks on Russian oil refineries, arguing that such strikes drive up global energy prices. Zelenskyy has outlined specific conditions for halting these strikes. Kyiv will stop only if Moscow ceases attacks on Ukrainian power infrastructure, if the US grants permission to use Starshield over Russia for missile detection, or if Washington provides additional Patriot missile systems. Until one of these conditions is met, Ukraine maintains its current strike campaign.

Russian forces launched nearly 2,300 drones at Ukrainian cities over the past week, Zelenskyy said in an online post on Sunday. He detailed the volume of attacks, citing approximately 1,600 guided bombs, 48 missiles of various types including ballistic models, and the nearly 2,300 strike drones. The Ukrainian president urged Western allies to accelerate deliveries of interceptor missiles to counter the sustained aerial offensive.

Russia’s defense ministry announced that its drones struck two cargo vessels on Sunday. One ship was en route to the Black Sea port of Chornomorsk and was hit overnight. A second vessel heading to the port of Odesa was struck during the day. The ministry stated that both ships were supplying the Ukrainian army. Russian forces also targeted a logistics center, a distribution center, and a logistics terminal in the city of Kharkiv during the overnight attack. Reuters has not yet independently confirmed these reports.

In the Russian border city of Belgorod, a Ukrainian drone attack on Sunday killed three people and injured 13, according to local authorities. Regional Governor Alexander Shuvayev said the overnight strike damaged 30 apartment buildings. A separate drone strike later in the day in the same region killed one additional person. The attacks highlight the continued intensity of cross-border strikes as the war enters its 1,706th day.