Putin’s Aide Medinsky Called a Kremlin Mouthpiece as Geneva Talks Stall, NBC Reports

Russia’s chief negotiator in US-mediated talks with Ukraine in Geneva, Vladimir Medinsky, drew renewed scrutiny on Tuesday.

Analysts said the Kremlin aide was chosen to transmit the Russian leader, Vladimir Putin’s position, rather than negotiate independently, according to NBC News on February 18.

Mark Galeotti, the British-based director of the consultancy Mayak Intelligence, described Medinsky as “essentially Putin’s hand puppet,” adding that he “has no angle or agenda of his own, but can simply be relied on to convey Putin’s message faithfully and report back faithfully.”

The talks ended on Wednesday without a breakthrough after two days of closed-door meetings, with Medinsky calling the negotiations “difficult but business-like” and saying another round would take place soon. 

The Geneva discussions again ran into entrenched differences over territorial issues in eastern Ukraine and the future of the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, with Ukraine rejecting demands to cede territory that Russian forces have not captured and Kyiv pressing for security guarantees as part of any settlement. 

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On the first day, delegations from Ukraine, the US, and Russia ended work on the political track of their closed-door Geneva talks after more than five hours and were due to resume the next day.

A military group continued its work, and the sides were expected to issue statements after the talks concluded. 

Earlier, it was reported that Ukraine confirmed preparations for trilateral talks in Geneva and that Russia said its delegation would be led by Kremlin aide Vladimir Medinsky.

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