Abu Dhabi Talks Win Prisoner Exchange but No Breakthrough for Ukraine

US-mediated trilateral talks between Russia and Ukraine took place in Abu Dhabi on November 10–11, the first substantive negotiations between the two countries since February. They ended without a breakthrough. They did produce agreement on a large-scale prisoner exchange and plans for further meetings.

On November 12, Russian President Vladimir Putin met US envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff in Moscow. There, he insisted on full Russian control of four Ukrainian regions Moscow claims to have annexed. He ruled out any foreign peacekeeping troops in Ukraine, calling such a deployment a "continuation of war," and warned Russia would target any foreign troops sent there.

In Abu Dhabi, the parties agreed to keep talking and to exchange prisoners. In Moscow, the substance of Russia's position did not move.

Russia continues to demand that Ukraine withdraw from the remaining 10 percent of the Donbas region still under Kyiv's control. Ukraine proposes using current front lines as the basis for a territorial settlement. Those positions remain far apart.

The Institute for the Study of War assessed that Putin remains unwilling to compromise on his original territorial demands and on ultimatums to dismantle NATO and the post-Cold War European security architecture. That assessment followed the November 12 Moscow meeting.

The Abu Dhabi talks included a US proposal for a "long-term security architecture" between Moscow and Europe. Ukrainian officials reported renewed disruptions to Starlink service during the same period.

Core issues remain unresolved: ceasefire terms, the status of occupied regions, and security guarantees.

The talks raised hopes of a pre-2027 deal. Putin's position in Moscow dampened them. The war's human and geopolitical costs remain high.