UAE President received the American delegation at the Ukraine talks in Abu Dhabi

Talks in Abu Dhabi and a meeting with the UAE president

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed received the American delegation that took part in the three-way talks between Russia and Ukraine, which were held in Abu Dhabi with US mediation. The delegation included President Donald Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. Also attending the meeting were Deputy Ruler of Abu Dhabi and National Security Adviser Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohamed and Sheikh Mohamed bin Hamad, as well as a number of senior officials. According to The National, the UAE hosted the talks as part of its efforts to advance dialogue and diplomacy toward a political settlement of the crisis.

Outcomes of two days of discussions

After two days of talks, Russia and Ukraine agreed on Wednesday to a major prisoner exchange; progress was also made on practical issues, including mechanisms for monitoring the ceasefire. “It was a good first step. One of the positive points is that we agreed on the largest humanitarian release of prisoners, and tomorrow we will determine the final numbers,” Kushner said after the talks. According to him, the sides “made good progress in understanding how to separate forces… and how to monitor the ceasefire” in order to ensure the right arrangements for a major de-escalation after the war. The outlet notes that hosting the talks in the UAE underscores the international community's trust in the country and its commitment to promoting peace. The final scale of the exchange and the details of the monitoring agreements remained subject to negotiation at the time of publication.