Russia, Ukraine, and US resume talks in Abu Dhabi

The meeting, which follows consultations with Ukrainian and European officials, is being held behind closed doors and will focus on security guarantees for both sides at the conclusion of the conflict.

Moscow’s delegation is led by Presidential Advisor Vladimir Medinsky, who also participated in two tripartite meetings in 2025. He is accompanied by Deputy Foreign Ministers Sergei Ryabkov and Mikhail Galuzin, and the head of military intelligence, Igor Kostyukov, who led the delegation in the January round in Istanbul, along with his deputy, Yuri Zhigarlovski.

The Ukrainian delegation in Abu Dhabi is headed by Rustem Umerov, currently the head of Ukraine’s foreign intelligence service, accompanied by the head of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s office, Kyrylo Budanov.

While the full Ukrainian team has not been officially announced by Kyiv, it is expected to include the head of the ruling parliamentary group, David Arakhamia, and Zelenskyy’s diplomatic advisor, Sergiy Kislitsia.

Prior to the meeting, the Ukrainian negotiating team met with representatives from the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, NATO, and the European Commission, as announced by Umerov on his Telegram account.

US mediators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner also “joined the meeting,” according to Umerov, who added, “We aligned positions and coordinated steps before the next round of negotiations.”

The European countries are represented by their respective security advisors in Abu Dhabi.

Russia has not officially accepted the participation of Europeans in the three-way meeting between Kremlin emissaries, Ukrainians, and Russians.

Previous tripartite meetings between Ukrainians, Russians, and Americans have resulted in commitments to exchange prisoners of war and civilians held captive, and to hand over the remains of fallen soldiers to the respective sides.