EU Officials Welcome Progress in Talks 11/24 06:12

   

   (AP) -- European officials welcomed Monday what they said were steps in the 
right direction at talks in Geneva on U.S. peace proposals seen as heavily 
favoring Russia after its invasion of Ukraine, but they offered few details and 
warned the discussions still have a long way to go.

   "The negotiations were a step forward, but there are still major issues 
which remain to be resolved," Finnish President Alexander Stubb wrote on social 
platform X about Sunday's meeting in Switzerland.

   The talks went over a 28-point peace proposal presented last week by the 
United States that triggered alarm in Kyiv and European capitals by heavily 
favoring Moscow's demands.

   The plan pressed Ukraine to consent to handing over some of its territory to 
Moscow and slashing the size of its army, leaving it vulnerable. The proposal 
also sought Europe's agreement that Ukraine will never be admitted into the 
NATO military alliance, though the alliance has previously said Ukraine is on 
an "irreversible path" to membership.

   The surprise emergence of the peace plan coincided with a bleak period for 
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, with the war less than three months 
shy of its fourth anniversary.

   It is under severe strain on the front line against Russia's bigger army, it 
is short of money, and Zelenskyy is trying to defuse a major corruption scandal 
that has tainted his government.

   Talks offer hope

   The Geneva meeting offered some hope for Kyiv. "Diplomacy has been 
reinvigorated, and that's good. Very good," Zelenskyy said late Sunday.

   It wasn't clear whether the talks would continue on Monday.

   Russian officials still haven't seen the revised peace plan text since 
amendments were made over the weekend, a Kremlin spokesperson said Monday.

   Dmitry Peskov added that there was currently no plan in place for U.S. and 
Russian delegations to meet this week, but that the Russian side remained "open 
for such contacts."

   German Foreign Minister Johannes Wadephul said U.S. Secretary of State Marco 
Rubio, who directed the talks in Switzerland, "made decisive positive 
contributions to ensuring that this plan can be accepted by both the European 
and Ukrainian sides."

   "I would like to say that all issues concerning Europe or NATO have been 
removed from this plan, which is a decisive success that we achieved 
yesterday," he told public broadcaster Deutschlandradio.

   Rubio said Sunday the talks were "very worthwhile" and constituted the most 
productive day in "a very long time."

   "I feel very optimistic that we can get something done," Rubio said.

   Turkey is also hoping to build bridges between Russia and Ukraine. Russian 
President Vladimir Putin was to speak by phone with his Turkish counterpart 
Recep Tayyip Erdogan later on Monday, Kremlin spokesman Peskov said.

   Erdogan's office said Sunday that the two leaders would discuss a deal from 
2022, which allowed Ukraine to safely ship exports of grain via the Black Sea. 
Moscow refused to extend the deal a year later, saying agreements to ease 
Russian exports of food and fertilizer hadn't been honored.

   Russian drones kill 4 in Ukraine

   Meanwhile, the grim reality of war still cast a pall over Ukraine as Russian 
forces kept up their deadly and devastating strikes on civilian areas.

   Russian drones hit residential areas of Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest 
city overnight, killing four people and wounding 13, including two children, 
authorities said.

   Eight residential buildings, an educational facility and power lines were 
damaged in the attack, according to the head of the regional military 
administration, Oleh Syniehubov.

   Kharkiv Regional Prosecutor's Office published photos showing homes on fire, 
rubble scattered across backyards and firefighters and war crimes prosecutors 
working on site.

   Ukraine's air force says Russia fired 162 strike and decoy drones over the 
country overnight.

   Russia also resumed its nighttime drone attacks on Ukraine's civilian and 
port infrastructure close to Romania's border, the NATO member's defense 
ministry said Monday.

   Romania scrambled two Eurofighter Typhoon jets and two F-16s in response to 
drones near its border, the ministry said.