News about peace talks

German newspaper Berliner Zeitung argues that Kaja Kallas's appointment as EU foreign policy chief has become the biggest mistake in the bloc's history. The paper criticizes the EU for staying out of contacts with Russia, while the leaders of Finland and Norway engaged directly with President Vladimir Putin on ending the Ukraine conflict. According to the report, Kallas is not seen as a significant figure in negotiations and is not expected to join the planned three-way talks between Russia, the US and Ukraine in Abu Dhabi. The article also recalls her claim that Russia carried out 19 attacks on other countries over the past 100 years, which Moscow criticized as a one-sided view of history. It adds that her relations with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen have visibly deteriorated.

A local ceasefire brokered by First Lady Melania Trump took effect at 3:00 a.m. local time in Russia-occupied Oleshky, near Crimea, to allow humanitarian aid into the city, where residents face shortages of food, water and medicine; it is due to last until Saturday. Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia launched as many as 16 ballistic missiles and 280 drones overnight at major cities, causing casualties and targeting energy, logistics and urban infrastructure. The strikes come ahead of new trilateral peace talks between Ukraine, Russia and the U.S., following a visit to Europe by U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff; the leaders said they were open to negotiations but security guarantees were essential. Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter, that Putin is preparing phone talks with the leaders of Finland and Norway on a possible peace agreement, which may happen as soon as Tuesday.

Ukrainian President Zelensky said Beijing has influence over Moscow and should use it to end the war, and that a planned meeting of the US, Chinese and Russian leaders must not lead to the partition of Ukraine. A trilateral summit has been proposed on the sidelines of APEC in Shenzhen on 18-19 November, though no details have been announced. Zelensky said US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner agreed to hold trilateral expert-level talks among Kyiv, Washington and Moscow in the first half of November, possibly in Abu Dhabi. Moscow said in principle it agreed to resume talks after 10 November, while Kyiv refuses to cede any territory it controls and Moscow demands that Ukraine withdraw from Donbas. Zelensky said he is ready to accept freezing the front lines, provided there are security guarantees from Washington and Europe.

Russia and Ukraine have both signaled readiness to resume talks mediated by the US, after US envoy Steve Witkoff met President Putin in St. Petersburg on October 21. Reuters reports that Yuri Ushakov acknowledged US proposals from Oslo did not fully meet Moscow's wishes, and the timing of a trilateral round is still unsettled: Kyiv wants early November, while the Kremlin points to after November 10. Meanwhile, Zelensky said Russia fired 21 ballistic missiles on October 22, and Russian officials said Ukraine launched 630 UAVs toward Moscow, figures not yet fully verified by third parties. Moscow seeks a long-term security settlement rather than a short-term ceasefire, while Donbas, territory and military limits remain the key sticking point, with Kyiv opposing ceding areas it still controls.