Russia demands Ukraine's Donbas region ahead of Abu Dhabi talks

US negotiators meet Putin for high-stakes Ukraine talks

FE Team | Published: January 23, 2026 21:48:59

ABU DHABI, Jan 23 (AFP): Russia said it was not dropping its key demand that Ukraine pull out of its eastern Donbas region, ahead of three-way talks between Ukrainian, Russian and American officials in the UAE later on Friday.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said territory remained the key issue and would be on the agenda for the talks, which look set to be the first direct public negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv on a plan being pushed by US President Donald Trump to end the almost four-year-long war.
Meanwhile, top US negotiators including Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow late Thursday for talks on a US-drafted plan to end the Ukraine war, just as Kyiv announced it had agreed on post-war security guarantees with Washington.
Diplomatic efforts to end Europe's deadliest conflict since World War II have gained pace in recent months, though both Moscow and Kyiv remain at odds over the key issue of territory in a post-war settlement.
Talks concluded after stretching past the three-hour mark, the Kremlin said in a statement released early Friday.
Witkoff had previously said he believed the two sides were "down to one issue", without elaborating.
Video published by the Kremlin showed a smiling Putin shaking hands with Witkoff, US President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner and White House advisor Josh Gruenbaum.