How Geneva returned to the world stage – momentarily

US Secretary of state Marco Rubio, talks to the press at the end of their consultations on the Trump peace plan at the US Mission in Geneva, Switzerland, Sunday, November 23, 2025. Keystone / Martial Trezzini

The Ukraine peace talks in Geneva held over the weekend have thrown the city back into the global spotlight.

They were led by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Andriy Yermak, from the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine. The talks also brought together French, German and British delegations to discuss a 28-point peace plan presented by the Trump administration, which Kyiv and its allies said were too favourable to Russia.

They concluded Sunday after 11 hours of negotiations with the United States and Ukraine saying they had created an “updated and refined peace framework” to end the war with RussiaExternal link. 

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenski said the talks had been “substantive”.  

International host

Geneva, home to the European headquarters of the United Nations, has traditionally been a place where international deals happen whether in front of the media or behind closed doors.

The most famous include the Geneva accords in 1954 that ended hostilities in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia and the Geneva Summit in 1985 which saw the first face-to-face meeting between American President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.

It’s unclear when the US and Ukrainian delegations took the decision to meet in the Swiss city but it’s unlikely they had long to prepare. The Swiss foreign ministry said both parties had requested Switzerland to organise the talks.

Despite Trump’s aversion for long and tortuous negotiations, his ultimatum to Ukraine for a deal by Thanksgiving which falls this Thursday, without confiding with the European Union meant forced backdoor diplomacy for the US to bring some alignment among stakeholders.

The initial plan required Ukraine to cede territory, reduce its military, renounce from ever joining NATO and did not provide security guarantees for Europe.

Delegations are often composed of tens of people which include the dignitaries as well their heads of staff, assistants and sherpas –personal representatives for a head of state or government –,which work behind the scenes to make sure the meetings run smoothly. This means not only organising the logistics, hotels, security and meeting rooms but also preparing the agenda and talking points.

Both US and Ukrainian delegations comprised eight dignitaries each. The American side included US special Envoy Steve Witkoff, Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll and Trump’s son in law Senior Advisor Jared Kushner.

The lineup on the Ukrainian side included Rustem Umerov, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council  of Ukraine. The Swiss foreign ministry said both parties valued Switzerland’s role as an international hub and its neutrality. The location also suited Germany, France and the United Kingdom.

The city hosts around 40 UN and other international organisations, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as well as hundreds of NGOs.

It also benefits from Switzerland reputation for offering good offices which allow it serve as a neutral mediator between conflicting parties.

“This shows that international Geneva remains at the centre of attention and that Geneva is a preferred venue for high-level meetings,” Carlo Sommaruga, a Social Democrat and member of the Swiss Senate from Geneva, told Swiss television  RTS.

According to Laurent Wehrli,  member of the House of Representatives for the Radical-Liberal Party from canton Vaud,  Switzerland’s neutrality was the reason that these talks could take place in Geneva. “Switzerland has a role to play,” he said.

A city under strain

The talks come as the city has lost some of its international  lustre. Numerous countries have cut voluntary payments or are behind with their mandatory contributions to the UN straining its finances. Trump has repeatedly criticised the multilateralism system promoted by the city and Switzerland.

UN organisations such as the World Health Organisation (WHO), the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) are cutting jobs or relocating them to other countries. There is also competition from other locations for international or bilateral negotiations.

The Trump administration administered another blow by announcing it is withdrawing from the WHO. USAID budget cuts have also impacted head count in the city which could lose thousands of jobs.

Proactive Ukrainian diplomacy

Since the Russian invasion in 2022 Switzerland has been proactive in positioning itself as a diplomatic partner to Ukraine.

Switzerland hosted a two-day summit in June last year in the Bürgenstock, a luxury resort, on Lake Lucerne aimed at creating a framework for a sustainable peace process. Some 90 countries attended but not Russia. Switzerland had already supported Ukraine with a conference organised in 2022 in Lugano on the reconstruction of the country.  In 2024 it also jointly organised the Ukraine Mine Action Conference calling on states to take concrete action to clear landmines.

Switzerland is likely to have gained the trust of US President Trump’s administration for organising future international talks in Geneva during the trade negotiations between the US and China  in May. The talks took place  at the residence of Swiss Ambassador to the UN, Jürg Lauber, an 18th-century  manor overlooking Lake Geneva.

The talks averted a full-blown trade war between the two superpowers. “We thank Switzerland for its excellent organisation,” US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told the media in May.  US Commerce Secretary Jamieson Greer said Switzerland had created an incredibly conducive atmosphere for negotiations.

Russia’s no show

Nonetheless, Russia did not take part in the latest talks in Geneva, nor has it joined any of the other conferences hosted in Switzerland since the  war started. Moscow has said Switzerland is not impartial after the country adopted the EU’s sanctions against Russia.

Instead Russia has decided to meet US delegations in other third countries. On Tuesday, US army secretary Dan Driscoll was in Abu Dhabi with Ukraine’s military chief and a Russian delegation to pursue peace talks.

Edited by Virginie Mangin/ac