U.S., Russia and Ukraine Hold Abu Dhabi Talks as Kyiv Is Asked to 'Trade the Donbas'

The United States, Ukraine and Russia held their first round of trilateral talks in about nine months on Tuesday in Abu Dhabi, CBS News reported, aiming to end the war that began when Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

After the first of two days of talks, which are focused on security guarantees, it was clear neither side expected an imminent breakthrough. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy nonetheless called the discussions "constructive and quite substantive."

Jared Kushner, President Trump's son-in-law, said in a post on X before the meetings that he and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff were "working hard to find a negotiated solution that can deliver lasting peace and create the conditions for a sovereign, secure, and prosperous Ukraine within a more stable European security environment." He described the round as an initial step that could "build momentum," and suggested a future agreement would involve a security arrangement including European countries and Russia.

Russia and Ukraine both poured cold water on that framing afterward. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow rejected European demands for a ceasefire, accusing Brussels of trying to "buy time" for Kyiv. "We will not agree to this," he said. Ukraine argues an immediate ceasefire is the necessary first step toward a wider settlement, and that only a direct meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy can settle territorial questions.

The most striking claim came from Zelenskyy himself. In a post on Telegram, he said the U.S. had asked whether Kyiv would be willing to "trade the Donbas for security," referring to the eastern region Russia has largely occupied. In exchange, he said, Washington was not willing to accept Ukraine joining NATO and suggested Kyiv settle for "something similar."

"No one believes that Putin will stop if we give up the Donbas," Zelenskyy said. "He might pause, but then he will return in a year, two years or five years. And who will be to blame then?"

In a later statement he said the sides had discussed "humanitarian measures," including another possible mutual release of prisoners of war, and had gone through "the substance of security guarantees for Ukraine and the foundations for their long-term effectiveness." Ukraine, he said, needs "practical mechanisms to prevent any recurrence of the war."

The gaps remain wide. Putin has said he wants Ukraine to pull its troops back from Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, regions Moscow declared its own in September 2022 but never fully captured. He has also demanded that Ukraine give up its NATO bid, accept strict limits on its military and drop restrictions on the Russian language and the Moscow-affiliated Orthodox Church. Zelenskyy has rejected ceding land Russia could not take on the battlefield, as well as any caps on his military.

The U.S., Russia and Ukraine held three other trilateral rounds this year, the first in January and the second in February. Diplomacy largely stalled after Trump decided to launch, alongside Israel, the ongoing war with Iran. Since then Witkoff and Kushner have met Putin and Zelenskyy separately. In October, Melania Trump's office said she had secured a temporary humanitarian ceasefire for the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky, which lasted from Oct. 28 to Nov. 1.

Talks continue on Wednesday.