The discussions in the United Arab Emirates will be the first meeting involving representatives from all three countries since the start of the war in Ukraine.
U.S., Russian, and Ukrainian representatives are set to hold their first trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi on Jan. 23, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aide Yuri Ushakov has said.
Ushakov announced the talks on Jan. 22 following a meeting in Moscow between Putin, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, and U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.
“It has been agreed that the first meeting of the trilateral working group on security issues will take place today, that is, on Friday, January 23, in Abu Dhabi,” he said, according to Russian state news agency TASS.
The Russian delegation will be led by Igor Kostyukov, director of Russia’s military intelligence organization, the GRU, Ushakov said.
“Our security negotiating team has already been formed and will depart for the Emirates in the coming hours,” he said.
Ushakov added that the United States had done a great deal of preparation for the summit, saying “they hope that this meeting will be successful” and will open up prospects for reaching an agreement on a peaceful settlement.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Jan. 23 that the question of territory would be at the forefront of discussions in the capital city of the United Arab Emirates.
Responding to questions in a WhatsApp media chat a day after meeting with Trump at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Zelenskyy described territory as a top priority.
“The question of Donbas is key. It will be discussed how the three sides … see this in Abu Dhabi today and tomorrow,” he said.
Moscow Meeting
Discussing the earlier meeting in Moscow, Ushakov told reporters that the talks had been “substantive, constructive, and very frank,” without suggesting that any diplomatic breakthroughs had yet been achieved.
“Most importantly, during these talks between our president and the Americans, it was reiterated that without resolving the territorial issue according to the formula agreed upon in Anchorage, there is no hope of achieving a long-term settlement,” he said, referring to last year’s summit between Trump and Putin in Alaska.
By Guy Birchall
