Overview
- The trilateral talks, which resumed on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, brought Ukrainian and Russian negotiators together in Abu Dhabi with U.S. mediators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner at the table.
- Moscow pushed to make the talks about a wider European security architecture and linked that agenda to territorial demands including parts of the Donbass.
- European governments took part in preparatory consultations and sent envoys to Abu Dhabi but were not seated at the main negotiating table, fuelling fears of being sidelined in any U.S.‑Russia deal.
- In Brussels and Berlin Chancellor Friedrich Merz is pressing EU states to guarantee roughly €45 billion of Ukraine funding for next year, a demand that has exposed resistance from Hungary, Slovakia and others.
- Officials and analysts expect slow, messy progress rather than a breakthrough as fighting and strikes continue and negotiators plan to extend talks beyond the initial session.