Zelenskyy says Russia’s readiness for peace talks will depend on the situation in the Middle East, Ukraine war briefing.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that the timing and venue of the next round of peace negotiations involving the United States, Russia and Ukraine will hinge on the security climate in the Middle East and on the existence of genuine diplomatic options. The Ukrainian president told reporters on Saturday that he will issue fresh instructions to Ukraine’s negotiating delegation, without revealing their content. He had previously indicated that the forthcoming talks were likely to be held in Abu Dhabi in early March. However, the United Arab Emirates has since become embroiled in conflict after the United States and Israel carried out strikes against Iran.

Zelenskyy expressed backing for the US‑led attacks, labeling Iran “an accomplice of Putin” for providing Shahed drones and the technology that enables Russia to manufacture them and other weapons used in its war on Ukraine. He stressed the need for Washington to act decisively while warning that the fighting must not expand into a broader war.

“It is only fair to give the Iranian people a chance to remove the terrorist regime, to eliminate it and to ensure the safety of all nations that have suffered from terror emanating from Iran,” Zelenskyy said in a video posted to social media. “It matters that the United States remains resolute. Whenever America is resolute, global criminals are weakened.”

Zelenskyy noted that Russia has deployed “more than 57,000 Shahed‑type strike drones against Ukraine – against our citizens, our cities and our energy infrastructure.” “Although Ukrainians have never threatened Iran, the Iranian regime chose to side with Putin,” he added.

Former President Donald Trump is urging Moscow and Kyiv to reach a settlement that would end Europe’s largest war since 1945, even as Zelenskyy complains that his country is under growing pressure to concede. Ukraine is demanding rock‑solid security guarantees that would bind the United States and its European partners to intervene if Russia resumes hostilities after a peace accord is signed.

The most recent round of talks, held in Geneva last week, failed to produce a breakthrough and was described as difficult by both Kyiv and Moscow, although Washington claimed it observed “meaningful progress.”

Zelenskyy’s chief of staff said on Saturday that Russia indicated at the Geneva meeting that it would accept the US proposal for Ukraine’s post‑war security guarantees. “At the last talks the Russian side said, for example, that they would accept the security guarantees offered to Ukraine by the United States,” Kyrylo Budanov told Ukrainian television.

Budanov also noted that Russia has not yet agreed to a summit between Zelenskyy and Vladimir Putin, a possibility that had earlier been floated by US special envoy Steve Witkoff.

Russia on Saturday condemned the US‑Israeli strikes on Iran as “a pre‑planned and unprovoked act of armed aggression against a sovereign and independent UN member state,” demanding an immediate end to the military action and a return to diplomatic channels.