As the strikes continue, a third round of Russia-Ukraine negotiations is scheduled.

A week before the fourth anniversary of Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russian and Ukrainian delegates are scheduled to convene in Geneva for the most recent round of US-brokered negotiations. Since Moscow has not backed down from its maximalist demands for Ukrainian land, there are still few hopes for a breakthrough.

As the subzero conditions persist, Russia’s nightly strikes on Ukraine are causing more damage to the nation’s already damaged electrical grid. Moscow launched a massive coordinated aerial strike on Ukraine just hours before the delegations’ meeting in Switzerland, using 400 drones and over 30 missiles to target 12 districts. There were at least three fatalities.

According to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, the most recent strikes demonstrated the “extent to which Russia disregards peace efforts.” More than 150 drones were repelled by Russian air defenses, while a Ukrainian drone strike caused an oil refinery to catch fire.

President Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner will mediate the negotiations on Tuesday. Kyrylo Budanov, the chief of staff of President Volodymyr Zelensky, and Rustem Umerov, the secretary of the National Security Council, will represent Ukraine. Members of the military intelligence community and Vladimir Medinsky, a presidential assistant, are part of the Russian delegation.

“I don’t think we should expect any news today,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, adding the talks would continue on Wednesday. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Donald Trump on Tuesday said Ukraine had “better come to the table fast.”

The US president has already expressed his dissatisfaction with the four-year conflict’s slow pace toward resolution.  About 20% of Ukraine, including portions of the eastern Donbas region, is occupied by Russia. Ukraine has rejected the Kremlin’s demand that it cede major portions of its region. 

Any agreements with Russia must be preceded by strong security assurances from the West, according to Kyiv. Artem Nekrasov, Ukraine’s deputy energy minister, said on Telegram that at least three energy workers were murdered in nocturnal attacks Monday close to the frontline city of Slovyansk.

According to Zelensky, nine more people nationwide were hurt, including children. The railway infrastructure and around ten residential buildings were damaged. Twelve areas were affected, according to Kyiv, causing infrastructural damage and depriving thousands of people of electricity in the southern city of Odesa.

The largest private energy company in the nation, DTEK, stated that the city’s electricity infrastructure had sustained “incredibly serious” damage and that it would take a long time for it to be operational again.  After months of constant Russian strikes on its infrastructure and as it battles through a bitterly cold winter, Ukraine is currently experiencing a severe energy crisis.These new negotiations come after the trilateral meetings in Abu Dhabi last month, which were the first three-way discussions between the US, Ukraine, and Russia since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of its neighbor in 2022.


Although the first prisoner of war exchanges in months occurred soon after, they concluded without any breakthrough.