Kyiv pushes for earlier Abu Dhabi talks and EU observer

Ukrainian officials are working to pull forward the start date for the next round of trilateral talks with the United States and Russia. The current tentative schedule sets the meetings in Abu Dhabi for November 10, following the US midterm elections. Kyiv, in coordination with Washington, is pressing Moscow to agree to begin the discussions at least one week earlier. As of the evening of October 25, Moscow had not yet confirmed a change to the date.

Officials cite the approaching winter as a primary driver for the urgency. A source in President Zelenskyy's team noted that every week in December will be critical for a population dealing with shortages of power and heating. The Ukrainian delegation does not expect a breakthrough at the first session. A team member who has participated in previous talks suggested that the initial meeting will serve as an introduction for new delegations, with substantive work beginning at the second meeting and potential decisions emerging around the third.

Kyiv is also pushing to seat an EU representative at the table. Russia has indicated it does not want Europeans present during the first meeting. The Ukrainian team plans to bring the European envoy to Abu Dhabi to receive real-time briefings. A source close to the negotiation team explained that the European envoys currently lack a mandate to make decisions, operating mainly in a signal-receiving capacity. Björn Seibert, the Head of Cabinet for European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, has emerged as a likely candidate for the role after the last two meetings.

The Ukrainian side proposes starting discussions with a broad vision of post-war security rather than immediate territorial details. A source stated that the team needs to define how Ukraine will be protected and what its cooperation with NATO will look like. The source added that public trust in US President Donald Trump is only 6 percent higher than trust in Russian President Vladimir Putin, meaning Ukrainians will not rely solely on US assurances. Davyd Arakhamiia, leader of the Servant of the People faction, told US officials that the final peace deal must be acceptable to residents of Kharkiv and Dnipro.

US government sources indicate the talks could also take place in Switzerland. Yuri Ushakov, an aide to the Russian leader, stated that Russia is ready to resume trilateral negotiations after November 4. President Zelenskyy has maintained that Ukraine will not accept limits on its armed forces size or a neutral status in any potential agreement.