Russia-Ukraine talks turn to post-war security but end without breakthrough

Trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi between Russia, Ukraine and the United States, aimed at ending the war in Ukraine, have concluded after a second day of discussions.

Although the American side said it saw “some openings”, there was no indication of any breakthrough to end the nearly five-year war sparked by Russia’s invasion.

However, both Moscow and Kyiv confirmed that a large-scale prisoner-of-war exchange was in the works and could be carried out soon.

Davyd Arakhamia, a member of Ukraine’s negotiating team, said the latest round of talks, the first since February, “was one of the hardest”.

“I believe the Russians came with very strict directives, so it was extremely difficult to soften the discussion,” he said. However, he added that he felt there was “good momentum” and urged that a second round of talks be organised as soon as possible.

Comments by Kremlin negotiator Vladimir Medinsky were less conciliatory.

“Right now… a lot depends on Ukraine, on the position of the US, and on whether Europe comes to its senses,” he said.

Following the talks, it was announced that on Thursday, US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, would travel to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin before proceeding to Dublin to speak with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The Abu Dhabi meetings had been framed as discussions centred on the “security architecture” of Europe.

For Kyiv, this may include assurances that its allies will come to its aid if Ukraine comes under attack again, despite the country not being a member of NATO.

For Moscow, a reworked “security framework” is likely to include limits on NATO’s influence in Eastern Europe, a central concern for the Kremlin since the alliance’s eastward expansion.

Earlier this week, Kushner said the US hoped to “create a new framework” of security between Ukraine, Russia and Europe that could “secure lasting peace”, while the Kremlin’s Medinsky said the world needed a “new” and “fair” security system.

Medinsky said the framework would serve as “a new Yalta and Potsdam”, referring to the 1940s summits at which the victorious Allied powers carved up post-war Europe into spheres of influence.

Ukraine and Europe have long been concerned about the current US administration’s commitment to European security and its increasingly accommodating position towards the Kremlin.

Representatives of Britain, NATO and several European Union countries were also in Abu Dhabi and met with US and Ukrainian negotiators. However, the Kremlin said its delegation had not had any contact with them.

Moscow has been dismissive of European involvement, although European countries have long argued that they are central to any post-war arrangements on their continent.

Many European countries, particularly those in Eastern Europe, believe their security is linked to that of Ukraine. A German government spokesperson said on Wednesday that agreements could not be implemented “if no consensus can be reached among Nato members”.

Kushner said the US was keen to bring the Europeans on board, adding that getting them “added to the format” would be on the agenda for his talks with Putin.

There is also disagreement over whether discussions on a future security framework should be preceded by a ceasefire, as European countries and Kyiv would want, or whether the fighting should stop only after an agreement has been reached, as the Kremlin has insisted.

Any agreement on a peacetime security framework, however, is contingent on the war ending, Kushner noted. But that cannot happen “until there’s an agreement on territory and on all other bilateral issues”, he added.

Since talks began last year, a major obstacle to any settlement has been Ukraine’s eastern region of Donetsk, most of which is occupied by Russia.

Kyiv wants to freeze the frontline to maintain control over the areas still under its authority, which it says are essential to its security.

Moscow, meanwhile, has never abandoned its demand that Ukraine relinquish the parts of Donetsk it still controls.

“Every inch” of land would be “returned to Russia one way or another”, Medinsky said.

Kushner acknowledged that the territorial question remained the most difficult issue, while Zelensky’s chief of staff and negotiator, Kyrylo Budanov, refused to be drawn on whether Russia was still demanding a Ukrainian withdrawal from the region.

Later, Budanov admitted that the talks had been “tough” and said Ukraine’s priority was to ensure Russia could not attack it again.

“These deals are very hard and complex, and this one is very emotional, very complex,” Kushner said.

“The reality is there is no trust right now between the sides and that is to be expected after a conflict like this.”

Credit: BBC