Ukraine, the United States and Russia will hold new trilateral talks later this week, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday, Jan. 26, signaling a rare intensification of diplomatic efforts to end the war following meetings in the United Arab Emirates.
In a post after receiving a briefing from Ukraine’s delegation, Zelensky said the talks in the United Arab Emirates marked the first trilateral dialogue format in a long time and focused primarily on military issues critical to ending the war.
The meetings also addressed unresolved political questions, Zelensky said, with negotiators analyzing the key positions of all sides and setting the framework for further diplomatic work.
“We are preparing for new trilateral meetings this week,” Zelensky said, without specifying dates or venues.
Zelensky did not provide details of specific proposals discussed but described the talks as substantive, saying they helped clarify positions ahead of the next round.
Kyiv’s delegation was led by Ruston Umerov – a veteran negotiator in talks with Moscow – alongside Presidential Office head and former intelligence (HUR) chief Kyrylo Budanov, negotiator David Arakhamia, and Chief of the General Staff Andriy Hnatov, among others.
The Russian delegation was led by Igor Kostyukov, head of the GRU, Russia’s military intelligence agency. Investigative outlet Agentstvo reported that Alexander Zorin, the GRU’s first deputy head for information, was also part of the Russian negotiating team.
Ukraine has consistently said that any diplomatic process must lead to a just and lasting peace and be backed by concrete military and security arrangements, even as diplomatic channels reopen.
As negotiators met for a second day Saturday, Ukraine accused Russia of sabotaging the peace effort by launching one of its heaviest attacks in months.
“Peace efforts? Trilateral meeting in the UAE? Diplomacy? For Ukrainians, this was another night of Russian terror,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha said.
Sybiha commented that Russian leader Vladimir Putin “ordered a brutal massive missile strike against Ukraine right while delegations are meeting in Abu Dhabi to advance the America-led peace process. His missiles hit not only our people, but also the negotiation table.”
The overnight barrage struck Kyiv’s energy infrastructure, killing one person and injuring at least 22 people in Kyiv and Kharkiv, Ukrainian officials said. Energy company DTEK said the strikes temporarily cut electricity to about 88,000 households in the capital.