KYIV: Russian officials increasingly see little re­­a­­­son to continue US-led peace talks with Ukraine un­­l­­ess Kyiv signals it is prepared to give up territory as part of a settlement, Bloomberg News repor­t­ed on Saturday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Talks scheduled for next week will be critical to determining whether the sides can move towards an agreement to end the war, the report said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said th­­at the time and place of the next round of peace ta­­­­­l­ks between the US, Russia and Ukraine would de­­p­­­­­end on the security situation in the Middle Ea­­st and the level of “real diplomatic possibilities”.

Zelenskiy said he would issue fresh directives to Ukraine’s negotiating team at the talks, without detailing what they were.

On Thursday, he had said the next round of talks would probably take place in Abu Dhabi in early March. However, the UAE has since been caught up in hostilities after the US and Israel launched aerial attacks on Iran.

Ukraine’s state oil and gas major Naftogaz said Ru­­ssia struck its gas extraction facility in the eas­­­t­­­­e­­­­­rn region of Kharkiv overnight, causing serious dam­­age.

“There is serious damage to the equipment, and depressurisation has occurred. Colleagues on site have localised the situation as quickly and professionally as possible,” Naftogaz CEO Sergii Koretskyi wrote on Facebook.

Published in Dawn, March 1st, 2026