Moscow Signals Readiness to Resume Ukraine Talks After November 10 as Abu Dhabi Meeting Date Remains Disputed
Key Facts
Moscow is in principle ready to resume trilateral talks with Ukraine and the United States after November 10, with the creation of a postwar security framework for Russia and Ukraine set to be the main topic, the Associated Press reported, citing Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov. The statement sets a new timeframe for a negotiating track that made little progress in previous rounds beyond prisoner exchanges. In Kyiv, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said negotiators had agreed to a trilateral technical meeting in Abu Dhabi in the first half of November. But he said the meeting depended on Russia, and Ushakov did not confirm a date. The differing formulations point to some convergence on resuming contacts, while the timing and actual participation remain unsettled.
Zelenskyy had said Ukraine also expected the meeting to take place in October, but it did not happen. That places the Abu Dhabi announcement in the context of previous attempts that failed to produce a technical meeting on the expected date. Ushakov said Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed “in principle” to resume talks after November 10, without that meaning, according to his remarks, that a specific date had been set. Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said the new talks were likely to take place in mid-November. That timing remains the Norwegian official’s estimate, while Ushakov identified November 10 as the date relevant to Moscow’s initial readiness.
The two sides’ statements also differ on what form the process should take after technical talks. Zelenskyy said the main issues could only be resolved at the highest level and that he wanted to move from technical negotiations to a leaders’ meeting. He described the agenda as aimed at “ending the war, bringing peace closer and preparing for a meeting at the leaders’ level,” the Associated Press reported. He added that a technical meeting in Abu Dhabi would be a step in a process he hoped would lead to a leaders’ meeting, not an agreement that such a meeting would take place. Ushakov, for his part, linked the talks Moscow may resume to the development of a postwar security framework between Russia and Ukraine.
Moscow’s call to involve Europe remains part of the dispute over which parties should take part in any settlement. Ushakov said Europe’s position could be decisive and that talking to Kyiv alone was not enough because Europe supports it, Independent Arabia reported. He also said the U.S. administration had so far failed to pressure Kyiv into accepting a peace deal, a Russian assessment reported by The Jerusalem Post. The Associated Press, meanwhile, reported that U.S. envoys had proposed a trilateral technical-level meeting to Putin and briefed him on progress in their talks with Zelenskyy. That places the U.S. proposal within a trilateral framework, while Ushakov is calling for Europe to be included in the broader political calculations of a settlement.
Substantial differences continue to limit the prospects for rapid progress. The Associated Press reported that previous rounds produced little progress apart from prisoner exchanges, while Moscow and Kyiv have each held to their core demands. Disputes include territory and security guarantees, and Russia is demanding Ukrainian territory it does not fully control, the agency reported. Commenting on proposals that emerged from a meeting in Oslo, Ushakov said they did not contain much that would help resolve the crisis, before later describing them as “a step in the right direction,” even though Moscow was “not fully satisfied with them.” This reflects limited Russian acceptance of a negotiating process, alongside continued objections to the proposals’ substance.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine, for its part, needed strong security guarantees and 10 years of funding to maintain its military under any peace deal. The security and funding demands set out what Ukraine considers necessary terms for a settlement, alongside its effort to move key decisions to the leaders’ level. Ushakov did not announce a confirmed date for a meeting in Abu Dhabi, while Støre said talks were likely to take place in mid-November. The Norwegian prime minister also said Russia may have begun looking for diplomatic opportunities, adding: “I think we may now have entered a phase in which the Russians are also looking for opportunities for diplomacy.” The technical meeting taking place, and any subsequent move to a leaders’ meeting, remain contingent on how Russia’s position develops in the coming days.