Ukraine is preparing for a fresh round of peace talks with Russia and the United States that could take place as early as October, according to Volodymyr Zelensky's chief of staff, Kyrylo Budanov. However, the Kremlin has again rejected the prospect of a face-to-face meeting between Vladimir Putin and Zelensky at the upcoming G20 summit, insisting any encounter must instead take place in Moscow, dealing a fresh setback to Washington's efforts to broker a swift resolution to the war.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in New Delhi that a Putin-Zelensky meeting at the G20, due to be held in Miami on 14-15 December, was "impossible", though he did not confirm whether Putin had even been invited. Zelensky has previously said Putin ignored an invitation to meet at a G7 summit in France in June and has repeated his willingness to meet at the G20 if both leaders are invited. The rebuff comes as US envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, who visited Kyiv and Moscow last weekend, work to advance negotiations, with Kushner suggesting "next steps" could be announced within a couple of weeks; Zelensky also confirmed he plans to meet Donald Trump in late September, while fighting continues, with Russian strikes killing at least seven people and wounding almost 60 across Ukraine over the weekend.