Russia and Ukraine are set to return to the negotiating table Tuesday for their first trilateral peace talks with the United States in nine months, giving the Trump administration a fresh opportunity to test whether either side is ready to move toward an agreement, as reported [1] by Fox News.
Ahead of the meetings, U.S. officials said Moscow and Kyiv have each demonstrated “a little bit of flexibility privately” regarding territorial disputes that have repeatedly blocked progress.
U.S. envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff will meet Ukrainian intelligence chief Rustem Umerov and Vladimir Medinsky, an aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin and a veteran negotiator. The talks are scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday in Abu Dhabi.
The Trump administration has asked Russia to accept an “Article Four and an Article Five-like security guarantee” for Ukraine. A U.S. official said Monday that the arrangement would be “effectively very similar to NATO.”
President Donald Trump has not decided what security guarantee the United States would provide, according to the official. An American guarantee would be a “really, really big deal” requiring an agreement between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The diplomatic landscape has shifted since the previous trilateral talks in Geneva, Switzerland, in February. The United States entered a new conflict with Iran, while the 2026 midterm elections delivered sweeping Republican losses as a blue wave moved across the country.
The Abu Dhabi meetings will begin structured negotiations over territory. Russia continues publicly to demand all of Donetsk, while Ukraine has pressed to freeze the conflict along the current line of contact.
Behind closed doors, however, the official said “both sides have shown a little bit of flexibility privately.” Whether that private movement survives direct negotiations will be an immediate test for the renewed diplomatic process.
Trump also suggested during a “60 Minutes” interview that aired Sunday that Ukraine’s borders could change under an eventual peace agreement. He said the country could emerge from the war with “a little bit different shape.”
U.S. negotiators do not expect the Abu Dhabi meetings to resolve the territorial dispute. Their immediate objective is to clarify each side’s position, identify remaining differences, and explore possible compromises that could be presented to Putin and Zelenskyy.
The administration views territory and postwar security arrangements as closely connected. Officials believe Russia and Ukraine will not make the concessions required to settle territorial questions until both understand what security conditions will exist after the fighting ends.
Before meeting Russian and Ukrainian representatives, U.S. negotiators will confer with national security officials from Germany, France, the United Kingdom and Italy. NATO, the European Union and Ukraine will also participate in discussions about security guarantees and a broader postwar security structure.
Washington then hopes to persuade Russia to enter a larger negotiating process that includes European governments. “We need Europe at the table,” a U.S. official said, arguing that direct talks between Russia and European countries will eventually be required for a durable settlement.
One proposal under consideration would revive the NATO Russia Council and turn it into a stronger forum for communication, easing tensions and resolving future disputes. Officials are also examining crisis communications, increased military transparency and reciprocal steps designed to reduce the risk of another conflict.
The administration is not expecting a final agreement in Abu Dhabi. Officials instead want to establish a framework for more frequent talks before expanding the current format into wider negotiations involving European governments.
Sanctions could also provide leverage for enforcing any eventual agreement. A U.S. official suggested sanctions against Russia might be eased gradually while preserving the ability to “spring back in place” if Moscow violates a peace deal.
Witkoff and Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, are considering additional meetings with Putin and Zelenskyy depending on the results of the two-day negotiations. “This is the first time I feel like we see real desire on the Russian side to finish,” the official said.
Major obstacles remain, including deep distrust between Moscow and Kyiv and unresolved decisions involving territory and security. The key question is whether the flexibility described by U.S. officials can produce concrete movement when Russian and Ukrainian representatives sit in the same room.
The Abu Dhabi talks could also prepare the ground for higher-level diplomacy. Trump plans to travel to China for the APEC summit next week, where he said Sunday that he expects to meet Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Discussions about a possible three-way meeting are underway, although no summit has been finalized. Witkoff and Kushner could also return for meetings with Putin and Zelenskyy after the Abu Dhabi talks conclude.