Kyiv is gearing up for a fresh round of three-way negotiations with Russia and the United States, with October floated as the target date. That is according to Kyrylo Budanov, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's chief of staff, who told reporters on the sidelines of a Kyiv conference: preparations are underway.
The timing follows a notable diplomatic push. US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner recently travelled to both Moscow and Kyiv — their first visit to the Russian capital since February and their first to the Ukrainian capital. Zelenskyy described the ideas they brought to the table as worthwhile, and suggested a new meeting could be hosted by Turkey, the UAE, Switzerland or another willing country. Moscow, through spokesman Dmitry Peskov, says it does not rule out resuming talks but stopped short of committing to a date or venue.
The last three-sided meeting happened in Geneva back in February, and US-led diplomacy had since lost steam while Washington's attention shifted to its conflict with Iran. Witkoff, for his part, said both capitals welcomed renewed momentum.
The sticking point remains stubbornly familiar: the fate of Ukrainian-held territory in the eastern Donbas region, which Russia claims but has failed to fully capture despite more than four and a half years of fighting. Until that core dispute moves, caution is warranted.
So why should this register on a travel site? Because diplomatic movement is usually the first signal of when a country might realistically reopen to ordinary tourism. Ukraine's skies remain closed, foreign governments maintain do-not-travel advisories, and insurance for visitors is extremely limited. But an active peace process — with envoys shuttling between capitals and a concrete month on the calendar — is the kind of development that precedes advisory reviews and, eventually, reconstruction-focused travel. Cities like Lviv, in the country's west, have kept cultural life ticking throughout, and Ukrainian officials have long signalled tourism as part of the postwar rebuild.
For now, nobody should be booking flights. But for travellers with Ukraine on their long-term wishlist — and it is a country with extraordinary architecture, cuisine and countryside — this is a story to follow. Watch for whether the October talks actually happen, who hosts them, and whether advisories from the US, UK and EU begin to soften. Those would be the real green lights.
Story reported by Japan Today (Thomson Reuters).