ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates: On Saturday, negotiators from the United States, Russia, and Ukraine will convene in Abu Dhabi for the second day of talks on a proposal that US President Donald Trump is pushing to put an end to the almost four-year conflict. On Friday, Ukrainian and Russian officials reportedly had their first direct conversation over the idea. The talks were “on the parameters for ending Russia’s war and the further logic of the negotiation process,” according to Rustem Umerov, Ukraine’s lead negotiator.
Later versions of the US document encountered opposition from Russia for proposing the idea of European peacekeepers, while the original plan was heavily criticized in Kyiv and western Europe for adhering too closely to Moscow’s viewpoint. The destiny of territory in the eastern Donbas region, according to both parties, is one of the primary unresolved issues in the quest for a resolution to a conflict that has destroyed portions of Ukraine, killed tens of thousands, and displaced millions. The two-day meetings are “part of ongoing efforts to promote dialogue and identify political solutions to the crisis,” according to a statement from the UAE’s foreign ministry.
At the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday, Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Later, US envoy Steve Witkoff met with Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin.
Donbas disagreement
Due to Russian actions, thousands of people in Kyiv were without warmth in below-freezing conditions when the Emirates conference got underway. Moscow is allegedly “deliberately depriving civilians of heat,” according to the European Union, which has dispatched hundreds of generators. Authorities announced early on Saturday that more Russian strikes in Ukraine’s capital and the southeastern city of Kharkiv overnight resulted in one fatality and twenty-two injuries. Mayor Vitali Klitschko wrote on Telegram, “Kyiv is under a massive enemy attack,” noting that numerous non-residential buildings had been struck and advising locals to stay in bunkers.
Moscow and Kyiv seem to be at a standstill over the territorial dispute, despite diplomatic efforts to put an end to Europe’s bloodiest conflict since World War II picking up steam. The Kremlin stated that its maximalist demand that Kyiv leave the eastern Donbas region remained in place just hours after Putin visited Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, in Moscow. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated, “Russia’s position is well known on the fact that Ukraine, Ukrainian armed forces, have to leave the territory of the Donbas.” He continued, “This is a very important condition.” Such proposals have been rejected by Kyiv, which still holds about 20% of the eastern territory.
Zelensky told reporters prior to the negotiations that territory remained a “key issue,” citing Moscow’s insistence that Kyiv leave its eastern Donbas region. “It is necessary that not only Ukraine has the desire to end the war and achieve full security, but that a similar desire somehow emerges in Russia as well,” he subsequently said in an online article. The last reported in-person meeting between Russian and Ukrainian officials took place in Istanbul last summer and only resulted in agreements to swap captive soldiers.
The Abu Dhabi meeting is the first time they have faced each other to talk about the Trump administration’s plan. Putin has repeatedly warned Moscow wants to acquire full control of eastern Ukraine by force if talks fail.
