Geopolitics › Russia & Eurasia › Russia–Ukraine war
US-brokered Ukraine peace talks
2025–26; no breakthrough as of Sept 2026· Treaty or event
FactTreaties, membership, measured data, events.
Trump administration efforts since 2025 to negotiate an end to the Russia–Ukraine war, with no breakthrough as of September 2026.
See it on the Geopolitics map →The picture
Talks began with US–Russia meetings in Riyadh in February 2025, then direct Russia–Ukraine rounds in Istanbul that produced prisoner swaps. Trump met Putin in Alaska in August 2025. A US 28-point plan in November 2025 was revised with Ukraine and Europe, and three-way talks followed in Abu Dhabi in early 2026. The Iran war interrupted them. In September 2026 envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner shuttled between Moscow and Kyiv, but Russia still demands all of Donbas, which Ukraine refuses.
Why it matters
The outcome will shape Europe's borders and security for a generation and test whether territory seized by force is rewarded, a precedent watched closely in Beijing and Taipei.
Key facts and numbers
Official readouts, leaked drafts of the US plans published by major outlets, statements by Trump, Putin and Zelensky, and wire-service reporting. Many terms remain secret.
What to watch
Debated: whether any deal brings binding security guarantees for Ukraine, and whether Russia wants a settlement at all or simply time to take more ground.
Connections (5)
▸Donald Trump brokers US-brokered Ukraine peace talksFact
The relationship
Trump promised to end the war quickly and made himself the broker, sending envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner between Moscow and Kyiv. He has alternated pressure on each side: pausing aid and intelligence to Ukraine in March 2025, then sanctioning Russia's two largest oil companies in October 2025.
Since when and why
Riyadh (February 2025), the Oval Office clash with Zelensky (February 28, 2025), the Anchorage summit with Putin (August 15, 2025) and envoy trips through September 2026.
How we know
White House statements, Trump's posts, Treasury sanctions notices on Rosneft and Lukoil, and readouts from Moscow and Kyiv; officials confirmed leaked plan drafts.
What to watch
Debated: whether Trump presses Russia hard enough or leans toward Moscow's terms; his repeated threats to walk away from mediation add uncertainty.
▸US-brokered Ukraine peace talks stalled over Russian-occupied Ukraine (including Crimea)Widely agreed
The relationship
Territory is the main deadlock. Russia demands that Ukraine withdraw from the roughly fifth of Donetsk province it still holds and wants its annexations recognized. Ukraine refuses to cede land it controls, its constitution requires a national referendum for any border change, and it proposes freezing the current front line.
Since when and why
The sticking point since the Alaska summit in August 2025, through the November 2025 US plan, Geneva talks and 2026 rounds in Abu Dhabi, Moscow and Kyiv.
How solid?
Public statements by Putin, Zelensky and US envoys, leaked plan drafts that included a Donbas withdrawal, and Kremlin demands repeated in official readouts.
What to watch
Unclear whether a 'demilitarized' or 'free economic zone' compromise for Donbas could satisfy both sides, and whether any recognition would be de facto or legal.
▸Volodymyr Zelensky negotiates in US-brokered Ukraine peace talksFact
The relationship
Zelensky speaks for Ukraine and must approve any deal. He accepts a ceasefire along current lines but rejects giving up unoccupied land and insists on Western security guarantees. He has courted Trump since their February 2025 Oval Office clash while leaning on European backers to stiffen US terms.
Since when and why
Washington, Paris, Berlin and other capitals, 2025–26; chief of staff Andriy Yermak led talks until resigning in November 2025, then security chief Rustem Umerov.
How we know
His public statements and nightly addresses, joint declarations with European leaders, and readouts of meetings with Trump and US envoys.
What to watch
Debated: whether elections, postponed under martial law, must precede a deal; Russia questions his legitimacy, which Kyiv and its allies reject.
▸US–Israel war with Iran (2026) interrupted US-brokered Ukraine peace talksWidely agreed
The relationship
The same US envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, handled both files, so the Iran war pulled attention away. A Russia–Ukraine round planned for early March 2026 in Abu Dhabi was shelved, the Kremlin declared a pause, and US interceptor missiles grew scarce for Ukraine. Higher oil prices also eased Russia's budget.
Since when and why
From late February 2026; the last direct round had been held in Geneva that month. In April Zelensky said the US did not 'have time for Ukraine'.
How solid?
Statements by Zelensky and the Kremlin and wide press reporting; analysts broadly agree, though no one can prove talks would otherwise have succeeded.
What to watch
Whether talks would have stalled anyway over territory, and how much the oil windfall strengthened Moscow's hand.
▸Recep Tayyip Erdoğan hosted the 2025 Istanbul rounds of US-brokered Ukraine peace talksFact
The relationship
Turkey kept ties with both Kyiv and Moscow, selling Ukraine drones while refusing Western sanctions on Russia. That let Erdoğan host the first direct Russia–Ukraine talks in three years, in Istanbul in May, June and July 2025, which produced large prisoner exchanges but no ceasefire.
Since when and why
Istanbul's Dolmabahçe and Çırağan palaces, May 16, June 2 and July 23, 2025; Turkey also hosted the 2022 Istanbul talks and helped broker that year's grain deal.
How we know
Turkish, Russian and Ukrainian official statements and verified prisoner swaps, including 1,000 for 1,000 in May 2025.
What to watch
Whether Turkey could take a bigger role, such as policing a Black Sea ceasefire, and how its Russia ties limit its neutrality.