Ukraine: Washington revives peace efforts as Russia and Ukraine resume negotiations

After nine months without direct negotiations, Russia and Ukraine have resumed peace talks in Abu Dhabi, marking a new attempt by Washington to end Europe’s deadliest conflict since the Second World War.

The discussions, led by US envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, focused on the release of prisoners of war, security guarantees for Ukraine, humanitarian issues and potential de-escalation measures. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the meeting as very productive, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the talks had been ‘constructive and quite substantive’. A second round of negotiations is scheduled for Wednesday.

However, significant obstacles to ending the war remain. Moscow demands that Ukraine adopt neutral status and abandon its ambitions to join NATO. Russian President Vladimir Putin has also shown no public sign of dropping the demand that Ukraine surrender the entire Donbas region, which Kyiv rejects. Both sides stress the need for security guarantees.

The negotiations also highlight growing tensions between Washington and European capitals. Although European representatives met with the Ukrainians separately, they were not part of the main discussions. France has stressed that no sustainable peace agreement can be reached without European involvement.

The talks represent a renewed diplomatic opportunity, but the fundamental disagreements over Ukraine’s territorial integrity and future security architecture remain unresolved.

References:

[Cover Image] Brooks, N. (2015, April 29). Anti-terrorist operation in eastern Ukraine (War Ukraine) [Photograph]. Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Anti-terrorist_operation_in_eastern_Ukraine_(War_Ukraine)_(39416813222).jpg. CC BY-SA 2.0.

Rouhana, R. (2026, November 10). US attempts new peace push at first Russia-Ukraine talks in nine months. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-ukraine-meet-us-backed-talks-after-trump-says-broad-deal-possible-2026-11-10/