Abu Dhabi peace talks begin Tuesday

The war in Ukraine is approaching its fifth year without a permanent end. Negotiators from the United States, Russia, and Ukraine are scheduled to begin a two-day session of talks in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on Tuesday.

This is the first direct meeting between the three parties since February. Previous rounds of negotiations early this year failed to produce visible progress toward ending what is described as Europe’s most devastating conflict since World War II.

The current session follows a localized truce brokered last month around the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky in southern Ukraine. U.S. First Lady Melania Trump helped facilitate that pause, which allowed for the evacuation of residents and the delivery of humanitarian supplies. Moscow and Kyiv cited the weeklong ceasefire as a positive model, although fierce fighting continues along the 1,200-kilometer front line.

Both sides have escalated their long-range attacks on each other using drones and missiles. Russia has intensified strikes on Ukraine’s power system as winter approaches. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that every power plant in Ukraine has been damaged in some way by these attacks.

Security guarantees are the primary item on the agenda for the Abu Dhabi talks. Zelenskyy has discussed guarantees similar to NATO’s Article 5, which treats an attack on one member as an attack on all. In an interview broadcast on Nov. 5, he asked what Western allies would do if Russia launches a new invasion. He specifically inquired about who would act, with what means, and when.

President Vladimir Putin demands that Ukraine pull troops from the four regions Moscow annexed early in the war but never fully captured. He also wants Ukraine to abandon its bid to join NATO and accept strict limits on its military. Putin rejects a general halt in hostilities, arguing it would only allow Ukrainian troops to rest and replenish weapons.

The Kremlin insists that any deal must also offer security guarantees for Russia. Just before the 2022 invasion, Moscow demanded that NATO roll back deployments of troops and weapons from Central and Eastern Europe. Similar demands are likely to be part of any comprehensive peace deal.

U.S. President Donald Trump met with Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev at the White House on Nov. 4. He stated that a big agreement involving more than Ukraine was in the works. Jared Kushner, who spoke with Zelenskyy for 90 minutes on Nov. 4, said the objective is to develop practical arrangements that address security concerns and reduce the risk of future conflict.

Ukraine insists its European allies must have a seat at the table. Kremlin foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov said no one would invite them to the Abu Dhabi talks. He added that if European envoys fly there, they will not be allowed into the room. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Europeans would need to be involved in broader negotiations at a later stage.

Vladimir Medinsky remains Moscow’s chief negotiator. A former culture minister known for hard-line views, he led the Russian delegation in previous talks in Istanbul. In those sessions, he stated that Moscow was ready to fight as long as it takes, comparing the effort to the 21-year conflict between Peter the Great and Sweden.