Seoul Gazette - Russia says battlefield success strengthening its hand in Ukraine talks

US President Donald Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner negotiated into the early hours with Vladimir Putin -- but no breakthrough for a peace settlement was announced.

The Kremlin said no "compromise" was found on the crucial issue of territories and that Ukraine's participation in NATO remained a "key" question in the talks.

The White House had previously voiced optimism about its plan to end Europe's worst conflict since World War II but that hope appeared to fade on Wednesday -- with Moscow saying it had found parts of the plan "unacceptable".

Witkoff and Kushner brought an updated version of a US plan to end the war.

Russia's advance in eastern Ukraine gathered pace last month and Putin has said in recent days Moscow is ready to fight on to seize the rest of the land it claims if Kyiv does not surrender it.

"The progress and nature of the negotiations were influenced by the successes of the Russian army on the battlefield in recent weeks," Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov -- who took part in the US-Russia talks -- told reporters including AFP.

"Our Russian soldiers, through their military exploits, have helped make the assessments of our foreign partners regarding the paths to a peace settlement more appropriate," he added.

Moscow insisted it was incorrect to say Putin rejected the plan in its entirety.

It also said Russia was still committed to diplomacy -- despite the Russian leader issuing a stark warning that Moscow was "ready" to fight Europe if it wanted war.

"We are still ready to meet as many times as is needed to reach a peace settlement," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

But Germany said Putin's rhetoric was "aggressive" and said it does not "currently see any signs that Russia is shifting into negotiating mode."

- Ukraine role in NATO 'key' in talks -

Moscow went to war in Ukraine in February 2022, saying it wanted to prevent Kyiv joining NATO -- a prospect that Ukraine and the Western alliance have called a pretext to start the fighting and that they say was not going to happen.

Since the full-scale offensive, Kyiv has said that joining the Western alliance would protect it from future Russian attacks.

Trump has repeatedly ruled out Ukrainian membership in the bloc.

Ushakov said the issue was "key" at the talks.

The Russian official said the US envoys would "take into account" Moscow's "considerations and our key proposals" -- without elaborating on what they were.

Trump -- who has expressed frustration with both Moscow and Kyiv for not finding a solution to the conflict -- has yet to comment on the outcome of the talks.

- Ukraine to hold talks with EU, US -

As the Americans returned from Moscow, Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky announced his top negotiator Rustem Umerov and army chief Andriy Gnatov were headed for Brussels, where NATO foreign ministers were due to discuss Washington's push to end the fighting.

Umerov and Gnatov will also travel to the US to meet with Trump's envoys, Zelensky said on social media.

Zelensky has said that any peace deal for the conflict should make sure Moscow won't attack again.

The fresh talks come as NATO pledges to buy hundreds of millions of dollars worth of US arms for Kyiv.

- 'Keep fight ongoing' -

NATO chief Mark Rutte said it was positive that peace talks were ongoing but that the alliance should make sure that "Ukraine is in the strongest possible position to keep the fight going."

European countries have expressed fears Washington and Moscow will reach agreements without them, and have spent the last weeks trying to amend the US plan so that it does not force Kyiv to capitulate.

In Moscow, tensions with Europe were palpable, with Putin delivering an exceptionally hawkish statement on Tuesday.

"We are not planning to go to war with Europe, but if Europe wants to and starts, we are ready right now," he said.

His spokesman on Wednesday accused Europe of being "obsessed with inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia".

Moscow's offensive in Ukraine, which has killed thousands, has also been accompanied by a crackdown on dissent at home unseen since the Soviet era.

W.Sim--SG