Lavrov: Russia supports the Abu Dhabi talks but harbors no illusions about the US initiative

Agenda: collective security and guarantees

Moscow has supported Washington's proposal to start the talks on Ukraine in Abu Dhabi with issues of collective security. According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, this concerns guarantees for Russia, Ukraine and the region as a whole, and at the meeting the parties will work on agreeing the principles of these future guarantees. The guarantees themselves, in his words, should enter into force only after a comprehensive agreement on settling the conflict is reached. This is reported by Life.ru.

Moscow's position: dialogue without illusions

Lavrov called Washington's readiness to discuss collective security what distinguishes the Donald Trump administration from the Joe Biden administration. At the same time, in his words, Moscow harbors no illusions about the current US administration and considers dialogue necessary despite the disagreements. Thus, the Russian side separates the very fact of readiness to talk from expectations about the outcome: supporting the initiative does not, in the minister's wording, mean trust in the initiator.

Format and timing of the round

The round of talks between Russia, Ukraine and the United States in Abu Dhabi is scheduled for November 10–11. Earlier, the same outlet, citing a member of the American delegation, Jared Kushner, reported that one of the goals of the meeting was named as reducing the risk of military escalation in Europe. Combining both reports, the meeting's agenda looks twofold: the American side publicly emphasizes de-escalation, while the Russian side emphasizes the principles of security guarantees which, according to Moscow's design, will take effect only after a comprehensive agreement. No results or interim arrangements are reported in the published materials so far.