Peace talks between the United States, Russia, and Ukraine are on pause amid the Iran war, Izvestia reported on Thursday, citing Russian officials.
Izvestia said the Kremlin had confirmed the pause and that the Iran war could push Kyiv towards compromise.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev would continue working on investment and economic cooperation, but the trilateral talks were on pause.
"Kirill Dmitriev continues work. The trilateral group is on pause," Peskov was quoted as saying by Izvestia.
Later on Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that it was time to resume peace talks and that Ukrainian negotiators would be traveling to the US on Saturday.
"There has been a pause in the talks. It is time to end that, and we will do everything so that the talks can be truly meaningful," Zelensky said in his nightly video address. "The Ukrainian team ... is already on the way and we expect a meeting on Saturday in the United States."
Russia providing Iran intelligence to target US forces
Additionally, two weeks ago, The Washington Post reported that Russia is providing Iran with information to target US forces in the Middle East, citing three officials familiar with the matter.
According to the report, Russia has been giving Iran the locations of US military assets since the outbreak of the war, including warships and aircraft.
This signals that the expanding conflict now includes one of the US's biggest nuclear competitors with "exquisite intelligence capabilities," The Post noted, adding that it also marks a shift from what experts previously thought, namely that Russia would stay away from the conflict and limit its response to diplomatic condemnations.
Ukraine counting on EU to unblock 90 billion euro package, Zelensky says
A 90 billion-euro aid package from the European Union that is currently blocked by Hungary is critical for Kyiv as it faces a "very difficult" situation while fighting Russia, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Thursday.
In comments to the European Council, he added that Ukraine was working productively with the EU on restoring the Druzhba oil pipeline damaged by Russia, and that he has received signals from the US that peace talks with Russia may resume soon.