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Zelensky arrives in Dublin for European Political Community summit, expects a debrief from Witkoff, Kushner

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Zelensky arrives in Dublin for European Political Community summit, expects a debrief from Witkoff, Kushner
President Volodymyr Zelensky arrives to meet with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz for talks at the Chancellery on Nov. 3, 2026 in Berlin, Germany. (Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Dublin ahead of the European Political Community summit on Nov. 12.

"Bilateral and multilateral meetings with partners are scheduled for today and tomorrow," Zelensky said.

The president added that a meeting with U.S. special envoys — Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner — will also take place in Ireland.

Following the two-day-long peace talks between Ukraine, Russia, and the U.S., Witkoff and Kushner announced they would travel to Moscow the next day to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"We see some openings and some opportunities," Kushner told the press, adding that they would then travel to Dublin to debrief Zelensky following the European Political Community Summit.

Washington-led peace efforts have been effectively in a deadlock, as the issue of territory remains a key sticking point. Moscow's demands have focused on Ukraine's withdrawal from Donbas, a partially occupied and strategically important region in eastern Ukraine.

The Kremlin has also demanded a ban on Ukraine's NATO membership, limits on its military, and the lifting of restrictions on the official use of the Russian language and on the Moscow-linked Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

Kyiv has rejected withdrawing from the territory it currently holds, formally recognizing Russian occupation, and restrictions on its armed forces, arguing that any settlement must prevent Russia from launching another invasion.

Instead, Ukraine has called for an unconditional ceasefire as the first step toward broader peace talks, a proposal that the Kremlin repeatedly dismissed.

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Oleksiy Sorokin

Deputy Chief Editor

Oleksiy Sorokin is the co-founder and deputy chief editor at the Kyiv Independent. He is tasked with building the organization and leading the hiring, editing, and newsletter workstreams. Oleksiy is the author of the "WTF is wrong with Russia?" newsletter, sent out every Thursday. For his work, Oleksiy was included in the 2022 Forbes 30 Under 30 list. Oleksiy holds a BA from the University of Toronto.

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