Ukraine, US and Russia start trilateral peace talks in Abu Dhabi

Ukraine, the United States, and Russia opened two days of trilateral peace negotiations in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, seeking to chart a path toward ending the conflict.

Delegations and Opening Positions in Abu Dhabi

The negotiations mark the first direct three-way talks since February, following a nine-month pause in diplomatic efforts. The discussions in the capital of the United Arab Emirates are scheduled to run through Wednesday, November 11, 2026. Russian state news agency TASS reported in a Telegram post at 10:16 a.m., citing a source, that the session had begun, with subsequent footage and official confirmations following from Kyiv and Moscow.

The Ukrainian delegation is led by Rustem Umerov, Head of Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service, alongside Kyrylo Budanov, Head of the Presidential Office; Serhiy Kyslytsya, First Deputy Head of the Presidential Office; Vadym Skibitsky, Deputy Chief of the Defense Ministry’s Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR); and Davyd Arakhamia, head of the Servant of the People parliamentary faction. The Russian delegation is headed by Vladimir Medinsky, an aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and includes Deputy Foreign Ministers Sergei Ryabkov and Mikhail Galuzin, military intelligence chief Igor Kostyukov, and senior General Staff officer Yury Zhigarlovsky. The United States is represented by special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, special envoy and son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump.

Ahead of the trilateral meetings, Ukrainian negotiators met with the U.S. Envoys as well as representatives from the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the European Commission, and NATO. European participants are holding separate consultations with Kyiv and Washington and will not take direct part in the trilateral negotiations between Ukraine, Russia, and the United States.

Diverging Agendas and Unresolved Core Demands

While U.S. Officials expressed optimism, describing a "real shot" at serious progress, both sides remain publicly far apart on fundamental issues including territory, ceasefires, and future security architecture.

According to U.S. Officials and delegates, the agenda addresses four main pillars: ending hostilities, establishing post-war security guarantees, developing economic recovery plans, and managing humanitarian issues. Budanov stated that Kyiv is interested in stepping up prisoner exchanges. Meanwhile, Moscow maintains that the first item on the agenda is discussing security issues concerning Russia, Ukraine, and the wider region.

President Vladimir Putin demands that Ukraine withdraw its troops from the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions, abandon its bid for NATO membership, accept strict limits on its armed forces, and lift restrictions on the Russian language and the Moscow-affiliated Orthodox Church. Putin has rejected a general halt to hostilities, arguing that a pause would allow Ukrainian troops to rest and replenish their weapons stocks, and warned that Russia would use force to impose its demands if Kyiv refuses to accept them.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that the trilateral talks had begun in Abu Dhabi and, in an update following a phone call with Finnish President Alexander Stubb, discussed coordination with European partners. Zelenskyy has ruled out surrendering territory that Russian forces have not managed to seize on the battlefield and rejected limits on the size of its military. Kyiv has called for an unconditional ceasefire as the first step toward wider peace negotiations, and security guarantees modeled on NATO's collective defense provisions are expected to be a central focus. Washington has reportedly discussed security guarantees comparable to NATO's Article 5 with Moscow, though European capitals have raised concerns about potential concessions to Russia and whether Washington might bypass European interests.

Persistent Battlefield Violence and Continuing Air Strikes

The diplomatic push coincides with continuous military action along the front lines and widespread aerial bombardments, including Russian attacks on cargo vessels in the Black Sea and an industrial facility strike in Kremenchuk, alongside Ukrainian drone strikes causing power outages in Russian-controlled Luhansk.

Negotiators do not anticipate a breakthrough during the first round of negotiations, with Arakhamia describing the resumption of negotiations after a lengthy hiatus as an achievement in itself while pointing to subsequent meetings for substantive movement.