Russia, Ukraine meet with US in Abu Dhabi talks as Trump says peace could come soon

Delegations gather in Abu Dhabi

The latest trilateral talks brought together representatives from the United States, Ukraine and Russia on Tuesday. The Trump administration is seeking a diplomatic breakthrough after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine continued for 1,721 days.

A source in Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s office said the Ukrainian delegation is led by Rustem Umerov, head of the Foreign Intelligence Service. Kyrylo Budanov and Davyd Arakhamia are also attending.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia’s delegation is led by Kremlin aide Vladimir Medinsky. Other participants include Yuri Ushakov, Igor Kostyukov and Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov.

Different priorities for the talks

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said security issues involving Russia, Ukraine and the region would top the agenda. He also said participants would work toward principles for a comprehensive settlement, subject to further consultations.

A statement on the Ukrainian presidential website said Kyiv wanted the trilateral format to produce results. Umerov said Ukraine’s priorities include ending hostilities, reliable security guarantees after the war, economic recovery and development, and humanitarian measures.

Territory and security divide

Moscow is demanding Ukrainian withdrawal from Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, four regions Russia claimed to annex in September 2022. The international community largely rejected the referendums behind those claims.

Putin also wants Ukraine permanently excluded from NATO and its military restricted. Zelenskyy says Ukraine must retain the right to maintain its armed forces and choose its future security arrangements, including possible NATO membership; he has rejected ceding territory not controlled by Russian forces.

Trump’s role and doubts

Trump spoke positively about the planned talks on Monday, saying the sides were having a very good conversation in Abu Dhabi. He has also pressed Zelenskyy to make concessions to Moscow and has criticized him over elections that cannot constitutionally take place under martial law.

Trump said hostility between Putin and Zelenskyy was a major obstacle to an agreement. He called the animosity tremendous and said he did not think Putin was stringing him along. The article also reports Trump’s earlier remarks about possible changes to Ukraine’s borders and his March threat to expand sanctions and tariffs on Russia.

Merezhko said he had no hopes for tangible results from the meetings, apart from the possibility of new prisoner exchanges. The article ends mid-quote after saying Putin continues to insist on something, so it does not provide the rest of his explanation.