The delegations held their sessions in both bilateral and trilateral formats.
At the end of the first day of negotiations, the representatives of the delegations plan to report back to their capitals.
The difference between the current round and previous ones lies not only in the location — negotiations are taking place in Switzerland instead of the UAE — but also in the composition of the Russian delegation. It is now headed by presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, who has replaced the head of the GRU, Igor Kostyukov. Advisors on national security from four European countries, allies of Ukraine, were also present at the negotiations, as reported by the office of President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Advisor to the Office of the President of Ukraine, Serhiy Leshchenko, confirmed that representatives from France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom arrived for the meeting in Switzerland.
So far, there have been no statements from the chief representative of the Russian delegation regarding the outcomes of the first day of negotiations in Geneva.
According to Axios, the negotiations have encountered difficulties due to Vladimir Medinsky's position. The Economist reports that Kyrylo Budanov is eager to sign a peace agreement as soon as possible; however, part of the Ukrainian delegation opposes this. President Zelensky emphasized that Ukrainians "will never forgive" if Russia gains full control over the Donetsk region.
