Russia-Ukraine peace talks: From territorial disputes to Nato – key issues on Abu Dhabi agenda
Russia, Ukraine and the United States are set to discuss security guarantees, territorial disputes and a wider European security framework when their negotiators meet in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday. The two-day round of peace talks are aimed at ending the nearly five-year-old war. The negotiations, the first trilateral meeting since February, come amid continued fighting along the front line and escalating Russian and Ukrainian drone and missile attacks.The talks follow months of stalled diplomatic efforts. Previous rounds of negotiations earlier this year failed to make visible progress towards ending Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II. With Moscow and Kyiv holding sharply different positions on the terms of a settlement, the discussions are expected to focus on the security arrangements that could prevent another escalation, as well as the territorial and military issues standing in the way of a peace deal.Here is what will be on the agenda:
Security guarantees for Ukraine and Russia
Security guarantees are expected to be a central focus of the Abu Dhabi negotiations. Ukraine wants assurances from Western allies that would deter Russia from launching another invasion after a potential peace agreement.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Kyiv and its allies have discussed guarantees similar to NATO’s Article 5. Under the provision, an attack on one NATO member is treated as an attack against the entire alliance.In an interview broadcast on November 5, Zelenskyy said the key question was how Western countries would respond if Russia attacked Ukraine again.“If Russia starts again, what will happen?” Zelenskyy asked. “Who will do what, with what means, and when?”Some European countries have also considered deploying troops to Ukraine after a potential peace deal. However, Moscow has rejected the proposal and warned that any European troops on Ukrainian soil would be treated as legitimate targets.Russia, meanwhile, wants security guarantees of its own. The Kremlin has long opposed NATO’s military presence in Central and Eastern Europe, arguing that the alliance’s deployments threaten Russian security.Before launching its full-scale invasion in 2022, Moscow had demanded that NATO roll back its troop and weapons deployments in the region. Similar demands are likely to feature in any comprehensive settlement proposed by Russia.US President Donald Trump has also hinted at a wider agreement on European security. After meeting Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev at the White House on November 4, Trump said a broader deal was being discussed.“It’s going to be a big agreement, and it’s going to involve more than Ukraine,” Trump said, adding that it might include all of Europe.
Territorial disputes and military restrictions
The territorial question remains one of the biggest obstacles to a peace agreement.Russian President Vladimir Putin wants Ukraine to withdraw its troops from four regions that Moscow illegally annexed during the war but has never fully captured. He also wants Kyiv to abandon its ambition of joining NATO, accept strict limits on its military and lift restrictions on the Russian language and the Moscow-affiliated Orthodox Church in Ukraine.Putin has insisted on a comprehensive peace agreement based on these conditions. He has rejected a general ceasefire, arguing that it would give Ukrainian forces time to rest and replenish their weapons stockpiles.Zelenskyy, however, has refused to surrender Ukrainian territory that Russian forces have failed to capture on the battlefield. Kyiv is also opposed to restrictions on its military and its security arrangements with Western partners.Ukraine argues that an immediate ceasefire should be the first step towards a broader settlement. It has also maintained that territorial disputes can only be resolved through a direct meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy.
Role of European countries in negotiations
The participation of European countries is another point of disagreement between Moscow and Kyiv.Ukraine wants its European allies to be part of the negotiations, arguing that any agreement on the continent’s security must involve the countries directly affected by it.Russia, however, has opposed their participation in the Abu Dhabi meeting.“No one is going to invite them to the negotiating table,” Kremlin foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov said when asked whether European envoys could join the talks. He added that even if they travelled to Abu Dhabi, they would not be allowed into the negotiating room.Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said European countries would have to be involved in broader discussions at a later stage.“Since the discussion will touch upon the future security architecture in Europe while addressing the mutual security of Russia and Ukraine, at some stage it would be impossible to do it without the Europeans,” he said.European involvement has also been complicated by the European Union’s difficulty in deciding who should represent the bloc in negotiations with Moscow.On October 27, Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre spoke to Putin in their first known direct conversations with the Russian leader since shortly after the 2022 invasion. They said they had spoken as leaders of Russia’s Nordic neighbours and not on behalf of the European Union.Peskov criticised the bloc’s inability to appoint a representative, saying EU members “can’t even decide yet who is authorised to speak on their behalf”. He described it as “a protracted indecisiveness and a lack of readiness on its part.”
Long-term European security framework
Beyond ending the fighting in Ukraine, the US has indicated that the negotiations could address wider security arrangements between Russia and Europe.Zelenskyy said on November 4 that he had held a 90-minute conversation with US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law. He said the negotiations “must move forward at full throttle to bring this war to an end as quickly as possible.”Kushner said the objective was to address the security concerns of all sides and reduce the possibility of future conflicts.“Our objective is to develop practical arrangements that address the security concerns of all sides, reduce the risk of future conflict, and create a more stable and predictable security environment,” he said in a post on X.He also highlighted the need for a broader framework to address decades of tensions between Russia and European countries.“For over 30 years, “Europe and Russia have struggled to establish a sustainable security framework,” Kushner wrote. “Decades of mistrust, competing security concerns, and the devastating consequences of this war make this an extraordinarily difficult challenge, but one that is essential to lasting peace.”He identified the main objectives as “permanent security consultations, reliable crisis communications, greater military transparency, reciprocal measures to reduce escalation risks, and an enduring framework for long-term European security and stability.”
Russia’s hardline position and continued fighting
The negotiations will take place against the backdrop of continued fighting and growing attacks on critical infrastructure.Russia has intensified strikes on Ukraine’s power grid as winter approaches. Moscow has increasingly used ballistic missiles and faster, jet-powered drones, while Ukraine faces shortages of US-made Patriot air defence interceptors.Zelenskyy said last week that “every power plant in Ukraine has been damaged in one way or another by attacks”. He urged Kyiv’s allies to provide generators and other equipment to maintain electricity supplies. He also called on them to share their air defence stockpiles, with Ukraine offering to help replenish them later.Putin has repeatedly warned that Russia will pursue its objectives through military force if Kyiv refuses to accept Moscow’s terms.Russia’s chief negotiator, presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, is also expected to represent Moscow in the talks. Medinsky, a former culture minister, led Russia’s delegation during the first direct peace negotiations with Ukraine in Istanbul in March 2022.Known for his hardline views, he made a pointed remark during the 2025 Istanbul talks, reportedly saying that Peter the Great had taken 21 years to defeat Sweden in the 18th century and that Moscow was prepared to fight for as long as necessary.The latest diplomatic push follows a weeklong localised truce around the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky in southern Ukraine last month. Brokered with the help of US first lady Melania Trump, it allowed some residents to evacuate and humanitarian supplies to reach the area.
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