On Wednesday, November 11, the second day of negotiations between Ukraine, the United States, and Russia regarding ending the war began in Abu Dhabi. The parties continue discussing a possible ceasefire, security guarantees, and other key issues of a peace settlement.
The start of the second negotiation day was announced by the head of the Ukrainian delegation, the head of Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service, Rustem Umerov.
"Starting the second negotiation day. First, a trilateral format together with the US and Russia. After that, we will hold a separate meeting with European partners. Working", - he wrote.
Thus, the negotiation day begins with trilateral consultations, and afterwards the Ukrainian delegation plans to discuss the results separately with European partners.
Main topics of the second day of negotiations
According to RBK-Ukraine sources, on November 11, the parties are expected to discuss a possible cessation of hostilities, the issue of energy infrastructure, and security in the Black Sea.
Meanwhile, according to Politico, one of the main issues on the second day will be territories.
The publication reports, citing American officials, that both sides have shown some readiness for flexibility on the territorial issue. However, no specific possible compromises or agreements have been presented publicly.
Territorial issues remain one of the main disagreements between Kyiv and Moscow. Russia insists on the transfer of territories that its troops do not control, while Ukraine rejects demands for the withdrawal of its troops from areas of Donbas under its control.
Summary of the first day of negotiations
The first day of trilateral negotiations took place on Tuesday, November 10, and lasted approximately four and a half hours. It was the first face-to-face meeting between representatives of Ukraine and Russia with US mediation after a long break.
According to sources in Ukrainian media, the participants focused mainly on security guarantees for Ukraine, the future architecture of European security, and the related demands of Russia. Humanitarian issues were also considered separately, including the possibility of a large-scale prisoner exchange.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy characterized the first day of negotiations as constructive and quite substantive. At the same time, he emphasized that reaching agreements with the Russian side remains difficult.
One possible practical result of the negotiation process could be a major prisoner-of-war exchange. According to Zelenskyy, exchange options in the formats of "1000 for 1000" or "1500 for 1500" are being discussed.
Nevertheless, a final agreement on such an exchange has not yet been officially confirmed. Politico, citing an informed source, reported that negotiations on this issue are still ongoing.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also positively assessed the first day of consultations, calling them very productive. At the same time, he warned that a significant amount of work remains ahead to achieve a full-fledged peace agreement.
According to Russian media reports, during the first day of meetings, representatives of the Ukrainian and Russian delegations spoke in Russian. The negotiations are being held in a closed format, without the presence of journalists.
Who participates in the negotiations
The Ukrainian delegation is headed by Foreign Intelligence Service chief Rustem Umerov. Its members also include Head of the President's Office Kyrylo Budanov, his first deputy Serhiy Kyslytsia, head of the parliamentary faction "Servant of the People" Davyd Arakhamia, and Deputy Head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense Vadym Skibitsky.
The American side is represented by US President's special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. The Russian delegation is headed by Vladimir Putin's aide Vladimir Medinsky.
Representatives of European states, the European Union, and NATO do not participate directly in the trilateral negotiations with Russia. However, the Ukrainian delegation holds separate coordination meetings with them.
In particular, on November 10, before the start of the trilateral negotiations, Ukrainian representatives met with officials from Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, NATO, and the European Commission.
According to Umerov, on November 11 the order of meetings will be different: first negotiations between Ukraine, the US, and Russia, and afterwards consultations with European partners.
No concrete results of the second day of negotiations have been reported yet.
Based on materials from: Rustem Umerov, RBK-Ukraine (Maria Kucheryavets), Politico
