Ukraine Russia war live: White House hits back at Zelensky after ‘difficult’ peace talks end in two hours

Ukraine-Russia war latest: White House hits back at Zelensky after ‘difficult’ peace talks end in two hours

President says military discussed issues seriously but ‘sensitive political matters’ not addressed properly

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The White House has hit back at Volodymyr Zelensky after the Ukrainian president called American pressure tactics "unfair" on Kyiv.

Zelensky made the remark at the start of three-way talks in Geneva to end the war in Ukraine.

Though US, Russian and Ukrainian delegations met for six hours on Tuesday, the talks stopped after less than two on Wednesday with no breakthrough.

Asked about Zelensky's "unfair" comment, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt hit back that Trump believes the war has been "very unfair, not just for Russians and Ukrainians who have lost their lives, but also for the American people and the American taxpayer who were footing the bill for this war effort before President Trump put a stop to it".

All sides have said they are willing to continue peace talks in future, though it is not clear when or where this would take place.

Zelensky said he was dissatisfied with the lack of progress in Geneva, insisting that “sensitive political matters” and the need for compromise had not been addressed properly.

“As of today, we cannot say that the result is sufficient,” Zelensky said.

Trump thinks it's unfair that both Ukrainians and Russians dying, says White House

Trump hits back at Zelensky's 'unfair' remarks

The White House has pushed back after Volodymyr Zelensky described American pressure tactics on Kyiv as “unfair”.

Zelensky had complained that Donald Trump kept publicly calling on Ukraine to make concessions to Russia in peace talks, without making similar demands of Moscow.

Responding to Zelensky’s comments, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said Donald Trump views the conflict as “very unfair – not just for Russians and Ukrainians who have lost their lives, but also for the American people and the American taxpayer who were footing the bill for this war effort before President Trump put a stop to it”.

In March last year, the Trump administration suspended billions of dollars in US military aid to Ukraine, halting crucial weapons shipments as Washington increased pressure on Kyiv to pursue negotiations with Moscow.A revised arrangement was later introduced under which Ukraine receives weapons from US stockpiles funded by Nato countries.

On Monday, Trump issued a call for Ukraine to end the war, claiming it was up to the war-hit nation to reach a conclusion.

“Ukraine better come to the table fast. That’s all I’m telling you,” Trump said on Air Force One.

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In pictures: Protesters call for end to war as Geneva peace talks stall

Negotiations in Geneva, the third round of direct talks organised by the US, have ended with no major breakthrough to end Russia's war on Ukraine.

The US delegation was led by special envoy Steve Witkoff and US president Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner.

The Russian contingent was led by chief negotiator Vladimir Medinsky, who left after less than two hours on the second day of talks on Wednesday.

Outside the venue, several protesters gathered holding placards reading “Stop the war now”, calling for an immediate end to the conflict.

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Ukraine imposes sanctions against Belarus' Lukashenko for aiding Russia's war

Volodymyr Zelensky announced sanctions against Alexander Lukashenko on Wednesday, pledging to “significantly intensify countermeasures” over Minsk’s support for Russia’s war effort.

“We will significantly intensify countermeasures against all forms of Lukashenko’s assistance in the killing of Ukrainians,” Zelensky wrote on social media.

Belarus, one of Moscow’s closest allies, served as a staging ground for Russia’s 2022 invasion, allowing its forces to advance towards Kyiv before being pushed back by Ukrainian troops.

Zelensky said Belarus – which shares more than 1,000km of border with Ukraine – had also facilitated Russia’s large-scale drone attacks.

Although there has been no active fighting along the Belarusian frontier, he said Minsk allowed Russia in the second half of 2025 to deploy relay stations on its territory to control drones used in strikes on Ukrainian infrastructure.

In his nightly address, Zelensky accused Lukashenko of continuing to align himself with Vladimir Putin in what he described as a “dangerous geopolitical game”, including hosting Russia’s hypersonic Oreshnik missile system in Belarus.

“Belarus continues to be used as a supply base for components, equipment and machinery for the Russian army,” he said. “Minsk must understand this. The sanctions send a political signal.”

Ukraine launches 'massive missile strike' in Russia's Belgorod

Ukrainian forces launched a massive missile at Russia’s Belgorod city, causing power outages in large parts of the border city, local officials said.

Ukraine reportedly also struck an oil depot in Russia's Pskov Oblast.

"Unfortunately, there's been another massive missile attack on energy facilities in the city of Belgorod. There are major damages,” Belgorod Oblast governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.

“We can see that there's a partial loss of electricity and heat, so we're currently investigating," he added.

The city where Ukraine struck is just 34kms from Ukraine's northeastern border with Russia.

Truce monitoring proposed as Geneva talks end without breakthrough

The US-mediated second day of peace talks in Geneva ended with no sign of a breakthrough and with both sides saying the talks were "difficult”.

The trilateral talks covered territorial arrangements, energy security, and control of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.

Russian chief negotiator Vladimir Medinsky called it "difficult but practical" and said the next session is expected "soon."

"The negotiations were not easy," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said after the talks broke up and he spoke briefly by phone from Kyiv with his negotiating team.

Mr Zelensky said Ukrainian forces are prepared to oversee a ceasefire, provided there is sufficient political will to implement and uphold it.

“They have essentially agreed on almost everything,” he added, noting that the United States would certainly be involved in monitoring the truce. He described this as a constructive sign.

On the political front, Zelensky said the discussions addressed “all the sensitive issues”. He added that a more detailed account would be shared once the delegation returns.

Opinion: Talks little more than mafia-style shakedown

By Sam Kiley:

Ukraine peace talks little more than a mafia-style shakedown by the US and Russia

Trump thinks it's unfair that both Ukrainians and Russians dying, says White House

Donald Trump’s spokeswoman says the US president believes it’s not fair that both Ukrainians and Russians are being killed.

Asked about Volodymyr Zelensky’s criticism of Mr Trump – that he was always pressuring Ukraine, not Russia, to make concessions, Karoline Leavitt said: "I think the president would respond to that by saying by saying he does not think it's fair that thousands of Ukrainians are losing their lives and Russians too in this deadly war.”

She said there would be another round of talks in future.

She went on: “But I think the president views this entire situation as very unfair, not just for Russians and Ukrainians who have lost their lives, but also for the American people and the American taxpayer who were footing the bill for this war effort before President Trump put a stop to it.

“And I would just remind remind everyone around the world that the United States is still selling weapons to Nato that are then being sent to Ukraine in their defence of their freedom in their borders."

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