WASHINGTON -- The Kremlin has cast doubt on US claims that Russia agreed to include European representatives in the next round of Ukraine peace talks, underscoring the obstacles facing Washington's latest diplomatic push to end the war.
US President Donald Trump's envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff announced on November 12 that they had secured Russian President Vladimir Putin's agreement to expand the negotiations.
But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said a decision on expanding the talks would depend on whether Moscow believed European countries were genuinely prepared to contribute to the peace process.
"Once we understand their genuine intention and readiness to contribute to the peace process, then it will be possible to make a decision on holding dialogue on a Ukrainian settlement in an expanded format," Peskov told reporters on November 13.
European involvement in the talks could strengthen Ukraine's position by bringing its allies directly into discussions about the continent's security.
But Putin continues to demand full Russian control over four Ukrainian regions Moscow claims to have annexed and has rejected the deployment of foreign peacekeeping forces in Ukraine.
Kushner Sees Progress
In a statement posted on X after meetings with Putin in Moscow, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Dublin, and European national-security advisers, Kushner described the three days of diplomacy as having produced "meaningful progress."
"Both sides have now agreed to expand the next round of negotiations to include our European partners," Kushner wrote, adding that the talks would address broader European security arrangements alongside territorial issues between Ukraine and Russia.
He also sought to reassure Kyiv that no wider European security arrangements would be finalized without addressing Ukraine's security concerns. Apart from humanitarian measures, he said, nothing would be finalized until a comprehensive agreement was reached.
Speaking after meeting Zelenskyy in Dublin, Kushner described their discussion as "very good" and called progress toward a major prisoner exchange a "very nice milestone." He said Putin was at least willing to "give it a try" when it came to European participation.
Kushner said Washington was working toward what could become the largest prisoner exchange of the war, potentially reuniting thousands of people with their families. He acknowledged, however, that significant differences remained.
Thomas Melia, a former senior US State Department official and now a senior fellow at Georgetown University's Center for Democracy and Governance, welcomed the prospect of European representatives joining the talks, arguing that their involvement would strengthen Kyiv's position.
"The more that Europeans are involved, the stronger Ukraine's position will be," he told RFE/RL, citing European leaders' firm support for Ukraine's defense and sovereignty.
Putin's Terms Persist
The Kremlin's latest comments have reinforced skepticism about whether Moscow was prepared to make meaningful concessions, even on the format of the negotiations.
Putin has sought to broaden negotiations into a discussion of European security, suggesting that a four-way dialogue could follow once European countries appoint a representative authorized to speak on their behalf.
That approach has raised concerns that Moscow could use the issue to shift attention away from its invasion and potentially divide Western allies.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas warned that Europe already had a security architecture, pointing to existing agreements that Russia had repeatedly violated. Without a cease-fire and respect for those commitments, she said, discussions about a new security arrangement risked becoming a distraction.
European leaders have also been reluctant to appoint a single negotiator. French President Emmanuel Macron stressed that Europeans would determine their own security, while German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the priority was getting Putin to negotiate seriously.
Geoffrey Pyatt, who was US ambassador to Ukraine from 2013 to 2016 and now chairs the advisory council for Ukrainian energy company DTEK, told RFE/RL that he saw little evidence of a genuine shift in Moscow's intentions.
"The Ukrainians I'm talking to here are absolutely resolute," Pyatt said. He described the debate over European participation as potentially creating the appearance of diplomatic progress.
Prisoner Hopes, Battlefield Realities
A major prisoner exchange could provide the clearest immediate humanitarian result of the diplomatic effort.
Melia welcomed the prospect of substantial numbers of prisoners returning home, describing such releases as worthwhile even if they did not resolve the war.
But he cautioned against confusing humanitarian gestures with a political breakthrough, noting that Russia continues to attack Ukrainian civilians and civilian infrastructure while Ukraine targets militarily significant Russian assets.
The fighting continued on November 13, with Russian strikes killing a 17-year-old boy in Zaporizhzhya and two people in Odesa, according to Ukrainian authorities.
Russian officials reported that Ukrainian drone attacks on industrial facilities in the Volgograd and Samara regions killed a total of eight people. An oil refinery in Volgograd was reportedly among the targets.
Bill Cole, founder of the Peace Through Strength Institute, warned that negotiations could drag on without changing the military balance or bringing the parties closer to an agreement.
Cole told RFE/RL he expected the negotiations could continue into early 2027. He argued that the US and its European allies should invest more heavily in Ukraine's unmanned systems and drone capabilities to weaken Russia's military capacity.
He described Ukraine's battlefield experience as a strategic asset for the West, arguing that Washington was failing to make sufficient use of Ukrainian expertise to improve its own military capabilities.
Cole also pointed to Kushner's description of diplomacy as "moving a boulder uphill," interpreting it as a signal of how difficult the administration recognizes a breakthrough will be.
He said he would be watching for signs that Washington was prepared to change course if the negotiations failed to deliver results.
Starlink Disruptions Add to Uncertainty
The diplomatic push has also been overshadowed by renewed restrictions affecting Ukraine's Starlink-based military communications.
Zelenskyy said disruptions to Starshield, the military version of SpaceX's satellite service, had made it harder for Ukrainian forces to intercept increasingly sophisticated Russian drones. Kyiv has contacted Washington for an explanation, with the Ukrainian president suggesting the restrictions appeared deliberate rather than the result of a technical malfunction.
US Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Thom Tillis condemned the reported restrictions and called on the Trump administration and SpaceX to restore Ukraine's capabilities.
They also pledged congressional oversight to establish who ordered or approved the disruptions.
Melia questioned the explanations offered by the White House, Elon Musk, and the companies involved, describing them as unreliable and suggesting that somebody was not being truthful.
Pyatt said the latest developments had done little to change his assessment of Moscow's intentions.
"The Russians have not changed goals and are not serious about negotiations," he said. "We need to increase pressure on Moscow."
