Russia to discuss territorial issues with Ukraine at Geneva talks

MOSCOW

The Geneva negotiations on Ukraine will cover a broader range of topics compared with the rounds in Abu Dhabi, including key issues related to territories, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday.

Speaking at a press briefing in Moscow, he said discussion of these issues requires the presence of the head of the Russian delegation, who was absent from the talks in the United Arab Emirates.

“This time it is intended to discuss a wider spectrum of questions, including, actually, the main issues that concern both territories and everything else. These are connected with our requirements. Here we need the presence of the chief negotiator, namely Vladimir Medinsky,” he said.

The Russian delegation for the upcoming talks in Geneva will be expanded. Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin and chief of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff Igor Kostyukov have joined the team, he said.

“The delegation will indeed be expanded this time. Besides Medinsky, there will also be Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin and other officials,” he said.

Asked why Medinsky did not participate in previous rounds in Abu Dhabi, Peskov said it was “because they focused specifically on security matters.”

Medinsky continues to lead the Russian negotiating delegation on Ukraine, he said.

Meanwhile, presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev will also take part in the Geneva negotiations. He will work separately within an economic cooperation group with the US, according to Peskov.

President Vladimir Putin is in constant contact with the negotiators on the Ukrainian settlement, and they received detailed instructions on the eve of departure, he said.

The initial round of trilateral security consultations between Russia, Ukraine and the US was held Jan. 23-24 in Abu Dhabi. A second round of talks followed at the same venue on Feb. 4-5.

Turning to Slovak Prime Minister Roberto Fico's statement that oil has become the subject of blackmail due to Hungary's disagreement to accept Ukraine into the EU, Peskov said Moscow agrees with this assessment.

"Yes, absolutely, we fully agree with this. De facto, it is. It's impossible to interpret it any other way," he said.

Commenting on a statement by five European nations alleging that opposition figure Alexei Navalny died after being poisoned with a dart frog toxin, Peskov said Russia has a "very negative" attitude toward their "conclusions" regarding the causes of his death in the penal colony.

Naturally, we do not accept such accusations, we do not agree with them. We consider them biased and based on nothing. We strongly reject them," he stressed.

Navalny's death, while serving his sentence in a penal colony in Yamal, was announced on Jan. 16, 2024. According to the Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN), the prisoner became ill and lost consciousness after a walk. Paramedics on site and an ambulance crew that arrived promptly attempted resuscitation, but were unsuccessful.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, commenting on the Western governments' statements, dismissed them as an attempt to distract attention from their own domestic issues.