Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Russia and Ukraine ended a second day of U.S.-brokered talks on Saturday without reaching a deal, though both sides said they would meet again next weekend. The talks came as Russian strikes left over a million Ukrainians without power in subzero temperatures.
Talks end without agreement
Neither side announced any agreements after the talks ended, but Moscow and Kyiv both said they were open to more dialogue. A U.S. official said another round of discussions was scheduled for next Sunday in Abu Dhabi.
“The central focus of the discussions was the possible parameters for ending the war,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy wrote on X.
The U.S. official, speaking anonymously, said the parties held detailed discussions. “We saw a lot of respect in the room between the parties because they were really looking to find solutions,” the official said. “We got to real granular detail and (we feel) that next Sunday will be, God willing, another meeting where we push this deal towards its final culmination.”
UAE says talks included rare face-to-face meetings
A UAE government spokesperson said the talks included rare face-to-face meetings between Ukrainian and Russian negotiators. The negotiators tackled “outstanding elements” of Washington’s peace framework, the spokesperson said.
Possible further meetings and leaders’ talks
The U.S. official said further talks might take place in Moscow or Kyiv before any meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelenskiy, or a three-way meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump. “Those sorts of meetings have to happen, in our view, before we get a bilateral between Putin and Zelenskiy, or a trilateral with Putin, Zelenskiy and President Trump,” the official said. “But I don’t think we’re so far away from that.”
Strikes on Kyiv and Kharkiv
Hours before Saturday’s talks, Russia launched hundreds of drones and missiles at Ukraine’s capital Kyiv and its second-largest city Kharkiv. Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, who was not at the negotiations, accused Putin of acting cynically.
“This barbaric attack once again proves that Putin’s place is not at (U.S. President Donald Trump’s) Board of Peace, but in the dock of the special tribunal,” Sybiha wrote on X. “His missiles hit not only our people, but also the negotiation table.”
U.S.-mediated process and pressure on Kyiv
Saturday had been scheduled as the final day of talks, which Zelenskiy called the first trilateral meeting under the U.S.-mediated peace process. The UAE said the discussions took place in a “constructive and positive atmosphere” and included talks about confidence-building measures.
Kyiv is under growing pressure from the Trump administration to make concessions to end Europe’s deadliest and most destructive conflict since World War Two. U.S. peace envoy Steve Witkoff told the World Economic Forum in Davos this week that negotiators had made substantial progress and only one sticking point remained, while Russian officials have sounded more sceptical.
What do you think the next round of talks in Abu Dhabi should prioritize?