Budanov tells NYT of back-channel contacts with Russian GRU chief and Wagner's Prigozhin; advises Zelensky against Donbas compromises
Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Kyrylo Budanov said in an interview with The New York Times published on Friday, September 4, that he maintained contacts with Russian military intelligence (GRU) chief Admiral Igor Kostyukov and with former Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin. Budanov, who leads the Ukrainian delegation in talks with Russia, said he advised President Volodymyr Zelensky not to accept territorial compromises on Donbas that would give Moscow a prize its army could not take on the battlefield. He also suggested conditions for a ceasefire are unlikely to emerge before spring 2027.
Key points
- Budanov told The New York Times, published 4 September, that he maintained contacts with GRU chief Admiral Igor Kostyukov and with former Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin.
- His first negotiations with Kostyukov took place in 2022, mediated by Turkey, over opening Black Sea grain shipping corridors; the dialogue later produced results including prisoner-of-war exchanges.
- Budanov said he kept the back channel with Kostyukov open even after Ukrainian intelligence inflicted significant losses on Kostyukov's forces at a GRU strongpoint in Vovchansk in 2024.
- Contacts with Prigozhin continued until the 2023 Wagner mutiny against the Kremlin and Prigozhin's death in a plane explosion.
- Budanov became head of the Office of the President of Ukraine in early January 2026 and said one of the main reasons he took the role was the chance to lead negotiations with Russia.
- At the Abu Dhabi talks (23–24 January and 4–5 February 2026) the 20-point draft plan had narrowed to two issues: administration of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant and control over the part of Donbas Russia has not captured.
- Budanov advised Zelensky not to accept Donbas compromises and projected that ceasefire conditions are unlikely before spring 2027.
Why it matters
The interview is the most detailed public account by a senior Ukrainian official of secret contacts with Russia's GRU chief and the head of the Wagner private military company. By tying his January 2026 appointment as head of the Office of the President directly to leading the negotiation track, Budanov signals that he intends to remain the public face of the talks. His public advice to Zelensky against Donbas compromises hardens Ukraine's position on the second of the two outstanding issues in the draft peace deal, while his projection that ceasefire conditions are unlikely before spring 2027 indicates that fighting will continue through the coming winter.
What happened
In an interview with The New York Times published on Friday, 4 September, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Kyrylo Budanov described his back-channel contacts with Russian military intelligence chief Admiral Igor Kostyukov and with former Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin. He said his first negotiations with Kostyukov took place in 2022, mediated by Turkey, over opening Black Sea grain shipping channels, and that the dialogue produced results including prisoner-of-war exchanges. Budanov said he maintained the channel with Kostyukov even after Ukrainian intelligence inflicted heavy losses on Kostyukov's forces during the 2024 assault on a GRU strongpoint at a cement plant in Vovchansk. His contacts with Prigozhin ran until the 2023 Wagner mutiny and Prigozhin's death in a plane explosion. Budanov, who leads the Ukrainian delegation in talks with Russia, said one of the main reasons he agreed in January 2026 to become head of the Office of the President was the opportunity to lead the negotiations. He advised President Volodymyr Zelensky not to accept compromises on Donbas that would give Moscow control of territory its army could not seize. He also projected that conditions for a ceasefire are unlikely to appear before spring 2027.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
The four Ukrainian outlets that carried the story centre Budanov's own framing of the negotiation track and his advice against Donbas compromises. Ukrainian-language coverage emphasises Budanov's quote that the war cannot last forever and that both sides need to seek a solution while acknowledging they cannot fully trust each other while fighting. Russian-language Ukrainian coverage adds detail on the narrower set of scenarios discussed for the disputed Donbas territory — administration by private military contractors, by a US-led "Board of Peace," or through joint Ukrainian-Russian civil administrations — and names Steve Witkoff as the US special envoy.
Background
Budanov became head of the Office of the President of Ukraine at the beginning of January 2026. His first contacts with GRU chief Kostyukov in 2022, mediated by Turkey, concerned opening Black Sea grain shipping corridors; the dialogue later produced results including prisoner-of-war exchanges. Ukrainian intelligence in 2024 assaulted a GRU strongpoint at a cement plant in Vovchansk, inflicting significant losses on Kostyukov's forces; Budanov says he kept the back channel open afterwards. His contacts with Yevgeny Prigozhin continued until the 2023 Wagner mutiny and Prigozhin's death in a plane explosion. The first trilateral Ukraine–Russia–US meeting took place on 23–24 January 2026, with the Ukrainian delegation led by Rustem Umerov and including Budanov; the second Abu Dhabi round followed on 4–5 February 2026. By the time of the Abu Dhabi talks the 20-point draft peace plan had narrowed to two issues: administration of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant and control over the part of Donbas Russia had not yet captured. Budanov said both sides understand the war cannot last forever, though Kyiv and Moscow cannot fully trust each other while fighting continues.