Overview
- U.S., Russian and Ukrainian negotiators met in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday for the first formal talks since February to seek a negotiated end to the war.
- President Volodymyr Zelensky described the opening day as constructive and said delegates prioritized prisoner releases, humanitarian steps and detailed security guarantees for Ukraine.
- Multiple reports say U.S. mediators floated a plan that would let Russia keep reduced occupied territory in exchange for a formal end to hostilities, a proposal Kyiv refused.
- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov insisted Moscow wants a broader European security architecture negotiated first and rejected an immediate truce while European leaders say security talks should follow a ceasefire.
- Fighting continued during the pause in talks, with Russian strikes the night before damaging power substations and killing civilians, a pressure that keeps the prospects for a quick deal uncertain as talks resume.