Washington sets November 10 and 11 for Russia-Ukraine talks in Abu Dhabi

Key Facts

U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff said U.S.-mediated talks between Russia and Ukraine will be held in Abu Dhabi on November 10 and 11. The announcement sets a date for the round after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had expressed hope it would take place between November 6 and 10, following the U.S. midterm elections scheduled for November 3. The announced date therefore came later than Zelenskyy’s proposed window and ahead of what the Associated Press described as the first trilateral talks of their kind since February. The agency said the talks would address postwar security arrangements, de-escalation and humanitarian efforts. The agenda puts security, de-escalation and humanitarian work at the center of the expected round.

The diplomatic track, according to Witkoff’s announcement, also includes U.S.-European meetings in Brussels during the same week. U.S. mediators will meet there with officials from France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the European Union and NATO to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine and the region, as well as reconstruction support. The Brussels meeting comes as Russian presidential foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov said European representatives would not be invited to the trilateral meeting in Abu Dhabi. Zelenskyy, meanwhile, said Kyiv wants to work with its European partners to ensure Europe’s position is taken into account in preparing the format for the meeting. This highlights a gap between excluding European representatives from the Abu Dhabi table and a parallel track to discuss guarantees with European capitals and institutions in Brussels.

Statements differ on the nature of the security arrangements the round should discuss. Ushakov said the talks would focus on building a security system for Russia and Ukraine after the conflict ends. Zelenskyy said the agenda includes ending the war and preparing for a leaders-level meeting. The difference reflects divergent framings of the negotiations: Moscow is proposing a postwar security system, while the Ukrainian president links the round to ending the fighting and preparing a meeting between leaders. Previous talks made no progress on the security guarantees needed to sustain any peace deal, according to the Associated Press. Guarantees remain on the agenda for the Brussels track, where U.S. and European parties will discuss the security of Ukraine and the region.

Zelenskyy also proposed potential de-escalation steps, including halting attacks on energy facilities and maritime trade, alongside further prisoner exchanges. He said discussions could address formats for possible leaders-level meetings, tying in with his statement that the agenda should pave the way for a meeting between them. These proposals fall within the broader range of humanitarian and security issues the Associated Press said the Abu Dhabi talks would address. On a halt to the fighting, the agency reported that Moscow rejected a truce until a comprehensive deal was reached on its terms, while Zelenskyy backed a halt that would freeze the front lines, followed by negotiations. This divergence puts specific de-escalation proposals against a broader dispute over whether a halt to the fighting should precede a comprehensive deal or come after it.

The scheduled round follows three rounds of negotiations held early in the year, according to the Associated Press. Those rounds made only limited progress, in the form of prisoner exchanges, as Moscow and Kyiv held to their core demands. At the heart of the dispute, Russia is seeking full control of four Ukrainian regions it has declared annexed, while Kyiv says any settlement requires security guarantees to prevent another Russian invasion. Russia occupies about 20% of Ukraine’s territory but has been unable to take control of all the regions over which it claims sovereignty, according to an agency report in late October. These competing demands keep territorial and security issues among the matters surrounding the resumption of negotiations.

Before the Abu Dhabi date was announced, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said Russia appeared to be seeking opportunities for diplomacy and predicted the new talks would take place in mid-November. The November 10 and 11 date announced by Witkoff puts the round within the middle of the month Støre had anticipated. In an earlier statement, Zelenskyy said he hoped the talks would be scheduled between November 6 and 10, after the U.S. midterm elections on November 3. With the date set, U.S. mediators are expected to meet in Brussels during the same week with representatives from France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the European Union and NATO. The Brussels meetings will focus on security guarantees for Ukraine and the region, and reconstruction support, alongside the scheduled Abu Dhabi talks.