The key facts

  • The talks in Abu Dhabi are taking place in a trilateral format with the participation of Russia, the US and Ukraine
  • Medinsky said the Russian delegation had been expanded and 'professionalized'
  • The opening of the meeting was preceded by remarks by UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan

Composition of the delegations and first statements

Trilateral consultations involving Russia, the United States and Ukraine have begun in Abu Dhabi. The meeting was opened by UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who addressed the participants in English. About how the start of the talks went, reports Gazeta.Ru citing RIA Novosti.

Medinsky's statement

Vladimir Medinsky, aide to the president who heads the Russian delegation, thanked the United States in Russian for its peacekeeping efforts and expressed hope for progress toward peace: according to him, the delegation has become 'larger and even more professional,' and he expects that the meeting, held at a high level of representation, will make it possible to move along the path to peace in the interests of the peoples of Russia and Ukraine.

Who is taking part in the talks

On the Russian side, in addition to Medinsky, the meeting is attended by Deputy Foreign Ministers Sergei Ryabkov and Mikhail Galuzin, as well as Igor Kostyukov and Yuri Zhigalovsky, representatives of two directorates of the General Staff. The Ukrainian delegation is led by Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Rustem Umerov; it also includes the head of the Office of the President Kyrylo Budanov, his first deputy Serhiy Kyslytsia, the leader of the Servant of the People faction David Arakhamia, Deputy Head of the Main Intelligence Directorate Vadym Skibitsky, and former Chief of the General Staff Andriy Hnatov. The American delegation is led by the US president's special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.

Context

Earlier, as Gazeta.Ru noted, it was reported that after the talks in Abu Dhabi 'everything could change very quickly'. As of the time of publication, the source gave no information about the results of the meeting.