Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he had a "positive" call with U.S. negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner about efforts to end Russia's invasion.
"We discussed how to strengthen diplomacy, what steps are possible, as well as security guarantees and engaging the Europeans. It was a positive conversation," Zelensky said in his evening address on April 1.
NATO chief Mark Rutte and U.S. senator Lindsey Graham also took part in the call, Zelensky said.
Meanwhile, Russia fired more drones at Ukraine in March than in any month since it launched its 2022 invasion, intensifying deadly strikes as peace talks stalled, an AFP analysis showed yesterday.
The analysis, which used daily reports published by Ukraine's air force, showed Russia fired at least 6,462 long-range drones into Ukraine last month, up nearly 28 percent over February and the second straight monthly increase.
Russia launched 138 missiles at Ukraine in the same period, a decrease of around 52 percent compared with the previous month, the data showed.
Of the missiles and drones, the Ukrainian air force said it had downed nearly 90 percent of them, the highest interception rate since February 2025, according to the data.
U.S.-led talks aimed at ending the four-year war stalled in March, as Washington shifted focus to its war with Iran.
Russia, which denies targeting civilians, has ramped up its drone production to an industrial scale since the war began.
