The latest round of US-mediated peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in Geneva on Wednesday ended without a major breakthrough, as fighting continues in a war that will enter its fifth year next week.

Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said no agreement had been reached on the thorniest questions at the negotiations in Switzerland, accusing Moscow of “trying to drag out” the process.

“We can see that some groundwork has been done, but for now the positions differ, because the negotiations were not easy,” he told reporters after the talks.

Zelenskyy said the status of Russian-occupied territories in eastern Ukraine and the future of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which remains under Moscow’s control, were among the most contentious unresolved issues.

He added that discussions had taken place along military and political tracks, including how any potential ceasefire might be implemented, describing the military channel as “constructive”. “The military understand how to monitor a ceasefire and the end of the war if there is political will,” he said.

The second day of talks ended after just two hours, signalling scant progress and underscoring how distant a deal still appears, despite Donald Trump’s promises to end the war on the first day of his presidency.

Russia’s chief negotiator, Vladimir Medinsky, described the Geneva discussions as “difficult but businesslike” as he left the talks, adding that further rounds were planned. Known for his ultra-conservative stance and widely disliked in Ukraine, Medinsky said new talks would soon follow.

The meetings were always likely to stall over the fate of Ukrainian-held territory in the east, which Moscow has demanded be fully ceded as a precondition for halting the fighting. Kyiv has rejected those terms, though Zelenskyy has said he is willing to consider alternative arrangements, including the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from parts of the east and the establishment of a demilitarised zone.

Speaking to Axios on Tuesday, Zelenskyy stressed that the Ukrainian public would reject any peace deal requiring Kyiv to unilaterally withdraw from the Donbas. “Emotionally, people will never forgive this. Never. They will not forgive … me, they will not forgive [the US],” he said.

Another unresolved issue is security guarantees, with Zelenskyy repeatedly stressing that any territorial compromise would come only after Ukraine secures firm commitments from its western allies, including Washington.

But the Trump administration, eager for an international policy win to bolster the president’s standing at home, has been pushing Kyiv to first agree to territorial concessions, offering security guarantees only afterwards.

Zelenskyy highlighted the time discrepancy earlier this week, writing on X: “Our American friends, they are preparing security guarantees. But they said – first this swap of territories, or something like that, and then security guarantees. I think – first, security guarantees. Second, we will not give up our territories because we are ready for compromise.”

European leaders have said Vladimir Putin is unlikely to make meaningful compromises unless the situation on the battlefield or at home deteriorates to the point at which he is forced to.

Ukraine may draw some encouragement from recent western intelligence assessments suggesting Russia is facing growing difficulties recruiting troops for the war. The Kremlin’s forces have made limited territorial gains this year, while Ukrainian troops have managed several localised counteroffensives in the southern Zaporizhzhia region. Moscow’s economy has also slowed to near-zero growth, though officials and analysts say the pressure is not sufficient at this stage to alter the Kremlin’s behaviour.

The Russian political analyst Tatiana Stanovaya said: “As long as Putin is in power, Russia isn’t paralysed by widespread protests, and there is at least some money left in the budget for weapons, the war will continue.”