The trilateral talks between Ukraine, the US, and Russia, scheduled for early November in Abu Dhabi, now depend on the American side. According to President Volodymyr Zelensky, Kyiv and Moscow view the possibility of such a meeting positively, but its final date has not been agreed yet.
Zelensky stated this during a conversation with journalists on October 27, Ukrinform reports.
The president explained that previously the talks depended primarily on Russia's readiness, but the situation changed after recent diplomatic contacts.
"Today Abu Dhabi depends on the American side", Zelensky noted.
According to him, Washington's main focus is currently on the Middle East, where there is a risk of new escalation. This affects the schedule of diplomatic meetings dedicated to ending Russia's war against Ukraine.
In particular, the American side asked to change the date of the talks in Brussels, which were planned for October 27-28. They were to be attended by US representatives, EU leadership, NATO Secretary General, and the Ukrainian side.
At the meeting, it was planned to agree on approaches to security guarantees for Ukraine and prepare a common position before negotiations with Russia. However, American representatives had to stay in Washington due to the situation in the Middle East. Kyiv is currently waiting for new proposals regarding the date of consultations.
Meanwhile, Zelensky reported positive signals regarding Moscow's readiness for talks. According to him, on October 27, Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre held a telephone conversation with Vladimir Putin.
Before this, European leaders had coordinated with Zelensky the issues they planned to discuss with the Russian side. After the conversation with Putin, they again contacted the Ukrainian president.
According to Zelensky, Stubb and Støre conveyed their impression that Russia is seriously considering the possibility of participating in the meeting in Abu Dhabi. At the same time, this does not yet mean final agreement on the talks by all parties.
Ukraine expects to discuss concrete steps toward de-escalation at the trilateral meeting. Among the main priorities are stopping strikes on energy infrastructure, reducing tension at sea, exchanging prisoners of war and their return home.
A separate issue will be preparing for a possible meeting of the presidents of Ukraine, the US, and Russia. The participants of the talks are to discuss in what format it could take place.
We remind you that on October 23, Zelensky reported that the trilateral meeting of negotiation teams was planned for the first half of November. At that time, the president stated that Ukraine was ready for talks any day, but their holding depended on the Russian side.
As of October 28, the exact date of the talks in Abu Dhabi has not been announced. The Ukrainian side continues diplomatic consultations with American and European partners.
