US, Russia and Ukraine kick off second day of Abu Dhabi talks

This blog has been temporarily paused. Read on here to get the latest on developments over the two days of talks on Tuesday, November 10 and Wednesday November 11, 2026:

US, Ukrainian and Russian negotiators are meeting at noon today, Russian sources told AFP.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky outlined some of the critical points in the talk in Abu Dhabi, saying they are working on a "large-scale exchange of prisoners," adding that US officials would travel to Russia to discuss the matter further.

Russia appeared to be looking ahead at the bigger security picture. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov underlined Moscow's goal of negotiating a broad European security framework before tackling the specifics of the war.

"The idea of defining clear parameters for a future security architecture, and only then moving on to resolving the actual Russia-Ukraine conflict, is absolutely reasonable," he said in Moscow.

Representatives for Ukraine and Russia are holding a two day summit with the US in Abu Dhabi that began yesterday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the trilateral meeting has so far been "constructive and quite substantive."

Zelenskyy said delegations had time to discuss "the need and possible parameters for humanitarian steps."

Meanwhile, top Russian delegate Sergei Ryabkov declined to give an assessment of any progress made so far, Russian news agency Interfax reported, adding that "it's too early to talk about that."

For his part, US envoy Jared Kushner told delegates his team had "narrowed the gaps" between the warring sides and hoped to move towards a "solution" to the conflict.

A top Russian delegate at the Abu Dhabi talks declined to give an assessment of any progress made so far, Russian news agency Interfax reported.

"It is too early to talk about that," Sergei Ryabkov said in response to questions from the press.

Ryabkov, who serves as a deputy foreign minister, confirmed that talks were on track to continue on Wednesday.

Russia and Ukraine have held their first face-to-face peace talks in more than nine months, meeting in Abu Dhabi with US envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff helping to facilitate discussions.

The talks came just hours after new Russian attacks on Ukraine, highlighting the challenges ahead. A major sticking point remains Russia's demand that Ukraine cede the entire Donbasregion, a condition President Volodymyr Zelenskyy continues to reject.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the trilateral meeting in Abu Dhabi has so far been "constructive and quite substantive."

In an online post, Zelenskyy said delegations had time to discuss "the need and possible parameters for humanitarian steps."

"The release of prisoners is a priority. They spoke in detail about the substance of security guarantees for Ukraine and the foundations for ensuring these guarantees function over the long term," he said.

Adding that he gave his team "clear instructions for further dialogue," the president promised "productive, high-quality, and honest work" on Ukraine's part.

On the sidelines of a G7 foreign ministers meeting in Paris, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised the Abu Dhabi talks as "very productive."

However, he added that an expanded European presence would be an asset.

"We think the trilateral (format) should eventually include our European partners at the table as well, because they are a part of solving this problem for the long term."

EU negotiators, for their part, have also expressed concern that Washington may be exerting too much pressure on Ukraine to cede territory in exchange for a truce.

The first day of negotiations has come to a close in Abu Dhabi after four hours of intense discussions.

US representatives Jared Kusher and Steve Witkoff said there were "some good ideas how to bridge" the differences between what Moscow and Kyiv want from a peace deal.

Talks are expected to resume Wednesday morning in the UAE capital. The summit is the first such meeting since February, and is focused on security guarantees for the future.

Russia attacked energy facilities in several regions during the night before the Abu Dhabi talks, causing numerous blacouts, Ukrainian grid operator Ukrenegro said on Tuesday.

The strikes hit sites in eight regions and cut power for people in six of them, it said.

"Due to enemy attacks on energy facilities, as of this morning there are power outages in the Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Kyiv, Sumy, Kharkiv and Chernigiv regions," Ukrenergo said on Telegram.

Energy workers "are operating around the clock to repair damaged equipment and restore electricity to Ukrainian homes as quickly as possible," the company added.

The overnight strikes killed two people in the centry city of Ladyzhyn, Prime Minister Sergiy Koretsky said.

Russia has been stepping up attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure ahead of the winter heating season, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday saying Moscow wanted to up the pressure on Kyiv ahead of the talks.

US, European and Ukrainian negotiators who met ahead of the trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi have issued a statement expressing their "shared commitment to a strong post-war European security architecture."

The statement also said that the participants "were clear that a strong NATO will remain central to Euro-Atlantic collective defense."

It remains, however,unclear whether all sides mean the same kind of security architecture, with many European leaders fearing that Washington and Moscow are intending a revamp of the security order that is beneficial to their own interests.

US envoy Jared Kushner said on Monday that a peace settlement will require direct Russia-Europe talks "on the broader security arrangements that affect them" and said Washington "recognises difficult decisions ahead."

The fear in European capitals would also seem to be borne out by remarks from a member of Russia's delegation ahead of the talks who said the meeting should focus mainly on the main elements of a post-war security framework for Europe.

"The Ukrainian settlement, while it is a matter ​of critical importance, is just one aspect of this wide-ranging discussion and is subordinate to ​the main ‌objective — the creation of a comprehensive and indivisible security architecture for the entire continent," the source said.

However, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen spoke out against any such deliberations being conducted at the two-day talks in Abu Dhabi

"Any meaningful discussions about Europe's security architecture can only be undertaken once a ceasefire in Ukraine has been achieved," she said on Monday.

"And it must take place in an appropriate forum, in particular with NATO Allies and EU members."

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul put it more bluntly.

"For Europe, it is clear: we do not need to establish a new security architecture for Europe," he said on Monday.

The impending talks in Abu Dhabi did not prevent attacks from both sides in the Ukraine conflict.

The Russian Interfax news agency cited the Russian Defense Ministry as saying its forces had hit a cargo vessel and a tanker in the Black Sea, while another cargo vessel was hit to the east of Ukraine's port of Odesa.

A Ukrainian official said on the Telegram messaging app that a Russian drone had struck an industrial facility in the central city of Kremenchuk, without giving details.

Meanwhile, power supplies to the eastern Ukrainian city of Luhansk and the nearby region, which are under Russian control, were cut following a drone attack by Ukraine, the TASS news ​agency quoted Russia-installed ​authorities ‌as saying.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has arrived in Denmark, where he is to hold meetings with Nordic leaders on military support, air defense and energy infrastructure security amid Russia's invasion of his country, Danish authorities said.

"I am proud to welcome President Zelenskyy and the Nordic leaders to Denmark. The Ukrainians' fight for a free Ukraine and a free Europe continues," Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said in a statement.

"Almost five years after the full-scale invasion, the rain of bombs targeting civilians, relief centers, and water and heating plants continues. That is why we must stand firm," Frederiksen said.

Zelenskyy's trip comes as the US-mediated talks on the conflict in Ukraine between Kyiv and Moscow kick off in Abu Dhabi.

The talks between Ukraine, Russia ⁠and ⁠the US have begun in Abu Dhabi, the Russian news ​agency ⁠RIA ​Novosti ​reported ​on Tuesday, ‌citing ​a source.

The talks, the first such meeting since February, are scheduled to run for two days as the sides seek a resolution to the conflict in Ukraine triggered by Russia's full-scale invasion of its neighbor launched in February 2022.

Ukrainian negotiators are meeting with US envoys and European and NATO representatives in Abu Dhabi ahead of the start of talks with Russia, according to Kyiv's chief negotiator.

"The first meeting will be held with representatives of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, NATO and the European Commission, joined by US Special Envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner," Rustem Umerov said on social media.

"We will align our positions and coordinate our steps ahead of the next stage of negotiations."

EU negotiators are not expected to participate in the main trilateral talks between Russia, Ukraine and the US.

The US involvement in the talks comes as many of Ukraine's allies fear that President Donald Trump seems to be increasingly on the side of Moscow, despite the fact that Russia is the clear aggressor in the conflict.

Trump's past angry treatment of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the denigratory remarks he has made about him seem to suggest that he holds Kyiv to be at least equally responsible for the war.

Both Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and US special envoy Steve Witkoff, who are mediating the Abu Dhabi meetings, have also been accused by critics of being soft on Russia.

In addition, US media have reported that Washington is involved in large back-door business deals with Moscow.

Kushner said ahead of the talks that he and Witkoff were working on a "negotiated solution that can deliver lasting peace and create the conditions for a sovereign, secure, and prosperous Ukraine within a more stable European security environment."

His statement on X, however, contained no hint that Russia initiated the conflict with its full-scale invasion of Ukraine launched in February 2022.

The EU, meanwhile, fears that Kushner's remarks saying any peace settlement would require direct Russia-Europe talks "on the broader security arrangements that affect them" could mean that the US and Moscow intend to jointly revamp Europe's security structures.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said on Monday that "[f]or Europe, it is clear: We do not need to establish a new security architecture for Europe."

Zelenskyy has also warned of what he called a "Yalta 2.0," referring to Western leaders dividing Europe together with the Russia-led Soviet Union in 1945.

The talks starting Tuesday in Abu Dhabi are the latest in a long line of meetings that have aimed to resolve the conflict in Ukraine — and failed.

In this article, DW looks at what is at stake and what can be hoped for, if anything: New trilateral talks on Ukraine war in Abu Dhabi: What to expect?