Photo: SERGEI SUPINSKY / AFP / Getty Images
Delegations from Russia, Ukraine, and the United States began historic trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi on Friday (January 23), marking the first such meeting since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine nearly four years ago.
The technical-level discussions, which may continue through Saturday, represent a significant diplomatic development amid the ongoing conflict that has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives. While not involving heads of state, the talks bring together key representatives from all three nations.
Ukraine's delegation is led by top negotiator Rustem Umerov and includes the deputy head of the presidential office and Chief of the General Staff Andrii Hnatov. Russia has sent representatives from its Ministry of Defense, with Main Intelligence Directorate Chief Admiral Igor Olegovich Kostyukov heading the team.
The meetings follow a separate high-level engagement where President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner met with Russian President Vladimir Putin for more than three hours late Thursday. Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov described those talks as "exceptionally substantive, constructive, and, I would say, extremely frank and confidential."
Territorial disputes remain the central obstacle to peace. Russia is demanding Ukraine surrender approximately 5,000 square kilometers of the Donetsk region – an area roughly the size of Prince Edward Island that includes the heavily fortified cities of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, which were home to more than 100,000 people each before the invasion.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has already ruled out territorial concessions but called the Abu Dhabi meeting "a step forward." He noted that documents related to security guarantees for Ukraine have been drafted and are ready to be signed by Kyiv and Washington.
The U.S. has reportedly proposed creating a free economic zone in areas of Donetsk still under Ukrainian control, with the region being demilitarized. However, details on implementation and security guarantees remain unclear.
President Trump has expressed optimism about reaching a deal, stating at the World Economic Forum in Davos: "I believe they're at a point now where they can come together and get a deal done, and if they don't, they're stupid."
Meanwhile, fighting continues on the ground. Russia's defense ministry claimed Friday that it seized the village of Symynivka in Ukraine's northern Kharkiv region, while Ukraine is battling to restore power to more than 1 million people left without heating after recent Russian attacks.
The UK Ministry of Defence recently estimated that Russia likely sustained more than 400,000 casualties in 2025 alone, including both dead and injured. Ukrainian casualty figures remain unclear.