STORY: Negotiators from Ukraine and Russia were due to begin a second day of talks in Geneva on Wednesday (February 18), as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the United States was putting undue pressure on him to bring an end to the four-year-old war.

Russia’s delegation arrived on Wednesday morning at Geneva’s InterContinental hotel, where the trilateral talks were set to be held from 9 a.m. (0800GMT).

The U.S.-mediated peace talks in Switzerland have been taking place as U.S. President Donald Trump has twice in recent days suggested it was up to Ukraine and Zelenskiy to take steps to ensure the talks were successful.

In an interview with U.S. website Axios published on Tuesday (February 17), Zelenskiy was quoted as saying that it was "not fair" that Trump kept publicly calling on Ukraine, not Russia, to make concessions in negotiating terms for a peace plan.

Zelenskiy also said any plan requiring Ukraine to give up territory that Russia had not captured in the eastern Donbas region would be rejected by Ukrainians if put to a referendum.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

VIDEO SHOWS: CONVOY FOR RUSSIAN DELEGATION DEPARTING HOTEL AND ARRIVING AT VENUE OF U.S.-MEDIATED UKRAINE TALKS

RESENDING WITH COMPLETE SCRIPT

SHOWS: GENEVA, SWITZERLAND (FEBRUARY 18, 2026) (REUTERS – Access all)

1. PEOPLE INSIDE HOTEL PRESIDENT WILSON SEEN THROUGH ENTRANCE

2. HEAD OF RUSSIAN DELEGATION FOR TALKS, VLADIMIR MEDINSKY, EXITING HOTEL, WALKING TOWARDS CAR / MEDINSKY GETTING INTO CAR

3. VARIOUS OF CAR CARRYING MEDINSKY AND CONVOY DEPARTING HOTEL

4. ENTRANCE OF INTERCONTINENTAL HOTEL, VENUE OF UKRAINE TALKS

5. VARIOUS OF CONVOY OF RUSSIAN DELEGATION ARRIVING AT INTERCONTINENTAL HOTEL

6. PEOPLE ENTERING HOTEL

7. ARMED POLICE OFFICERS OUTSIDE HOTEL

8. PEOPLE ENTERING HOTEL

9. SIGN FOR INTERCONTINENTAL HOTEL

10. HOTEL ENTRANCE