Zelensky: trilateral talks on Ukraine only after State Duma elections

Vladimir Zelensky said that a trilateral meeting involving Ukraine, Russia, and the United States will not take place before Russia’s parliamentary elections, but expressed hope for initial results from negotiations by the end of September.

Speaking to journalists on September 10, Zelensky confirmed that the trilateral meeting is being postponed until after the Russian State Duma elections, scheduled for September 18–20. According to him, Ukrainian and American negotiators are in constant contact, and he is counting on progress in talks on energy and grain before the end of the month — following a planned meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump.

The statement marks a shift in tone compared to what was said just a few days earlier. On September 7, Zelensky told journalists that negotiators from all three sides could meet “as early as this month” and that Ukraine wants to hold a trilateral session in the fall.

“If it works out in September, that would be wonderful,” he said at the time.

On September 4, Zelensky called for the resumption of trilateral talks after U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner completed separate rounds of negotiations in Kyiv and Moscow.

Russia’s State Duma elections will be held over three days, from September 18 to 20. The vote to fill all 450 seats in the lower house of parliament was officially scheduled by a decree signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in June. Analysts note that the Kremlin is unlikely to engage in substantive peace diplomacy during a domestic election period.

Zelensky is expected to meet with Trump on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York later this month. According to Reuters, the last round of trilateral talks on Ukraine involving U.S. representatives took place in February. Since then, Ukrainian and Russian delegations have held only separate meetings with the American side, and the negotiation process has stalled over territorial disagreements and Washington’s shift of focus to other crises.

Head of the Ukrainian President’s Office Kyrylo Budanov said in late August that Ukraine is seeking to resume direct talks with Russia with U.S. participation.

“I hope for that — and for American participation too, of course. We cannot do without them,” Budanov said in an interview with Ukrainian outlet Novyny Live.