The key facts

  • Trilateral talks between Russia, Ukraine and the US began in Abu Dhabi on November 10, the first such meetings since February
  • The American delegation is led by Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner; before the talks, meetings with Ukraine, the EU, NATO and European countries were planned
  • Moscow's and Kyiv's positions diverge: Russia demands territorial concessions, Ukraine rules out ceding territory and insists on guarantees

Talks in Abu Dhabi: agenda and participants

Russia, Ukraine and the United States have begun trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi, as Ukrainian state media and the RIA Novosti agency reported on Tuesday, November 10, reported Ukrainian state media and the RIA Novosti agency. According to The National, the meetings are scheduled to last two days and will be the first since February. In addition to security guarantees, the agenda includes de-escalation, humanitarian measures and prospects for a broader settlement.

Composition of the delegations and the plan to bring Europe in

The American delegation is led by Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of President Donald Trump. According to the outlet, before the talks began, US representatives planned to meet with delegations from Ukraine, the EU, NATO, Germany, France, the United Kingdom and Italy. A US official told journalists that security guarantees and a 'long-term security architecture between Russia and Europe' are being discussed, and stated: 'I believe we now have a chance to try to achieve serious progress in ending the war.' According to him, the proposal is to bring the Europeans into the discussion after the trilateral format and to work along parallel tracks.

Prospects for a breakthrough and context

Assessments of the chances of a breakthrough remain restrained. According to The National, Moscow and Kyiv continue to strike each other's energy facilities; Russia is demanding major territorial concessions from Ukraine, while Kyiv insists on strong guarantees against future aggression and rules out ceding territory. The outlet also notes that the talks are taking place after a painful defeat of Trump's Republican Party in the US midterm elections. Earlier, Russian and Ukrainian delegations held at least two rounds of talks in Abu Dhabi with US mediation, and with UAE mediation the sides have exchanged hundreds of prisoners since the start of the war.