The talks bring together competing pressures: Ukraine seeking security guarantees in exchange for territorial discussions, Russia demanding territorial control, and the Trump administration pushing both sides toward resolution. The three-way format represents a shift from separate bilateral channels, positioning U.S. officials as direct mediators between the warring parties.
Russian, Ukrainian, and U.S. negotiators held talks in Abu Dhabi on January 23, marking the first known instance of Trump administration officials meeting with both countries simultaneously. Zelenskyy said the territorial concessions issue would likely be discussed. The Kremlin characterized the gathering as a “working group on security issues.”
Building the Framework
The talks culminated weeks of diplomatic effort. The initiative began in mid-November 2025, when President Volodymyr Zelenskyy traveled to Turkey to jump-start negotiations. Following that trip, reports emerged of a 28-point peace plan drafted by the U.S. and Russia. Critics said the proposal leaned heavily in Moscow’s favor.
In subsequent weeks, U.S. officials held parallel meetings with both governments. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met a Ukrainian delegation led by chief of staff Andrii Yermak in Geneva on November 23. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll visited Ukraine to brief Zelenskyy on the U.S.-backed proposal and later met Russian officials in Abu Dhabi on November 24-25. Kremlin officials said detailed discussion of the peace plan did not occur at that meeting.
By late November, Zelenskyy had replaced Yermak with Rustem Umerov following Yermak’s resignation amid a corruption scandal involving Ukraine’s energy sector. Umerov led a Ukrainian delegation to Florida on November 30 to meet U.S. officials. Zelenskyy traveled to Paris on December 1 to brief French President Emmanuel Macron on those talks as a separate U.S. delegation headed to Moscow.
On December 2, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Jared Kushner and Keith Witkoff for five hours at the Kremlin. Putin’s foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov described the meeting as constructive but said “much work remains.”
Security Guarantees Take Shape
Ukrainian delegations returned to Florida for follow-up meetings on December 4-6 and later that month. The focus shifted toward security guarantees in mid-December, after Zelenskyy met with Witkoff and Kushner in Berlin on December 14-15. U.S. officials said Washington agreed to provide Kyiv with unspecified security guarantees.
The pace of talks accelerated in early January 2026. Zelenskyy attended a summit of Ukraine’s allies in Paris on January 6-7 with Witkoff and Kushner. Those attending said they were ready to provide international guarantees to deter Russian attack if a peace deal were struck. Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev held talks with Witkoff and Kushner in Miami on December 20-21 and later at the World Economic Forum in Davos on January 20.
Convergence at Davos
On January 22, Zelenskyy met Trump at Davos. Trump called the talks “very good,” while Zelenskyy described them as “productive and meaningful.” That same day, Putin hosted Witkoff and Kushner in Moscow for nearly four hours. Ushakov said “reaching a long-term settlement can’t be expected without solving the territorial issue,” but indicated more talks would follow in the United Arab Emirates.
Russian, Ukrainian, and U.S. negotiators are scheduled to continue talks in Abu Dhabi beginning February 4 for two days of negotiations.