Ukraine agrees to US-proposed trilateral technical talks in UAE, Zelenskyy says

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that Kyiv had agreed to join US-proposed trilateral technical talks in the UAE.

Speaking at a joint news conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Kyiv, Zelenskyy said Washington had also presented the proposal to Russia, which is expected to respond.

"Today, the American side is in contact with both Ukraine and Russia and is proposing a trilateral meeting at the technical level by the end of October," he said.

Zelenskyy said he had confirmed Ukraine's support for the meeting.

"We are open to the United Arab Emirates or another country proposed by the American side. I know they will propose this to the Russian side as well, or may have already done so. We will wait for the response," he added.

Turning to attacks on Ukraine, Zelenskyy said Kyiv would continue responding to Russian strikes, particularly those targeting bridges in the capital for four consecutive days.

Zelenskyy said he was "amazed" by Russia's "savage desire to escalate every single day."

"I am not surprised by Russia's hatred of Ukraine, but I am surprised by this approach. They struck our warehouses – Nova Poshta, Ukrposhta, and others. We gave them a fitting response with Wildberries," he said.

"Now they are striking bridges. Do they really think we won't respond?" he added.

Zelenskyy also said Russia continues to target civilian infrastructure, including data centers and mobile network facilities.

He accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of "counting on constant escalation," stressing that "he wants this very much."

"This is an answer to everyone – to those who believe that all you have to do is simply ask Putin and he will end the war for real. It won't happen simply," he said.

On interceptor drones, Zelenskyy said "Bars" drones had shown the best results, with a shoot-down rate of around 30%, while other models were improving.

"These are long-range drones that are almost missiles," he said, adding that Ukraine will receive 2,000 jointly produced "Bars" drones from Germany.

Zelenskyy also said Ukraine had begun developing the "Turrets" program, with dozens of systems planned for deployment at different facilities.

He said Ukraine was also developing several types of small missiles and expected to see initial results in the second half of October.

"If we get the results, we will be able to immediately move to a proper production volume of the corresponding product," he said.