Delegations from Russia, Ukraine and the United States met in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday for the latest round of US-brokered talks to and the nearly four-year war.
Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council chief Rustem Umerov described the talks that will run until Thursday as “substantive and productive, focusing on concrete steps and practical solutions.”
US special envoy Steve Witkoff joined the talks along with the US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Commenting on the trilateral discussions held in the UAE, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said a breakthrough in the talks may not come for a while but the Trump administration has made great progress on talks over the past year. “The bad news is that the items that remain are the most difficult ones. And meanwhile the war continues,” he went on saying.
Moscow refused to comment on the fresh talks, with the Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov only saying that “the doors for a peaceful settlement are open” but that Russia would proceed with its military operation until Ukraine meets its demands.
Abu Dhabi talks coincide with the expiry of the last nuclear arms pact between the United States and Russia on Thursday. Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin could extend the term of the treaty. The trilateral discussions also come amid Russia’s relentless attacks on Ukraine’s energy grid that knocked out power and heating for around million houses and which occur each winter since Russia’s full-fledged invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
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