Abu Dhabi Peace Talks: Europe Joins U.S.-Brokered Ukraine Session

European representatives will participate in the U.S.-mediated peace talks between Russia and Ukraine scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday in Abu Dhabi. France’s foreign minister confirmed the attendance on Sunday, marking a shift from the previous three-way format involving only Washington, Moscow, and Kyiv.

Jean-Noël Barrot, the French foreign minister, stated that France would ensure Europe’s voice was heard during the sessions. He did not specify which officials would represent Paris or whether they would engage in direct negotiations or observe. The Kremlin had previously rejected the idea of European involvement, with spokesman Dmitry Peskov asserting that the trilateral structure was already agreed upon.

Peskov criticized European governments for failing to designate a single spokesperson. He acknowledged on Friday that security discussions would eventually require Europe’s participation. On Thursday, President Donald Trump met with Kremlin envoy Kirill Dmitriev and suggested the potential agreement might involve all of Europe, not just Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told CNN on Friday that he had not received specific details regarding the agreement Trump referenced. Zelenskyy compared the situation to the 1945 Yalta conference, warning that it could be dangerous to settle Europe’s division without including affected countries.

This is the fourth round of talks brokered by the Trump administration and the first since February in Geneva. Previous meetings yielded little progress, particularly as the U.S. administration focused on its conflict with Iran. Moscow agreed to return to the table after U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff met President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg in October. During that visit, Putin announced the release of an American prisoner, a move that followed Trump’s lifting of sanctions on Russian diesel exports.

Ukraine opposed the diesel sales, arguing they replenished Moscow’s war chest. Witkoff said the agenda for the current talks will cover postwar security arrangements, de-escalation, and humanitarian issues. This follows a limited ceasefire brokered by First Lady Melania Trump that allowed aid to reach a town in Russian-occupied Ukraine.

Russia’s delegation will be led by Vladimir Medinsky, a senior aide to Putin who has participated in talks since March 2022. For the first time, the group includes Deputy Foreign Ministers Sergei Ryabkov and Mikhail Galuzin. It also features Yury Zhigarlovsky, a deputy head of the General Staff’s operations directorate, and military intelligence chief Igor Kostyukov.

The Institute for the Study of War noted that some of these Russian officials previously sought to slow negotiations or push harder on Moscow’s demands. Russia continues to demand that Ukraine cede large parts of its territory and renounce NATO membership. Zelenskyy has insisted that any security commitments must specify who would act and how if Russia attacked again.

Analysts remain skeptical of the outcome. John Herbst, a former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, wrote for the Atlantic Council that Putin has rejected every U.S. proposal accepted by Kyiv. He suggested the talks might result only in an agreement to hold another round. The timing follows Democratic midterm victories, which Zelenskyy said could improve U.S. aid prospects. Russia may also seek to lock in deal outlines before a new Democratic-controlled Congress convenes in January.

A trilateral meeting between Trump, Chinese President Xi, and Putin is being discussed for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen later this month. While diplomacy proceeds, the war continues. Zelenskyy reported that Russia fired 36 ballistic missiles at the Kyiv area on Saturday night, with only four intercepted. In southern Ukraine, the death toll from a guided-bomb strike on an aid distribution site in Komyshuvakha rose to at least 55.