US to host Russia-Ukraine peace talks in Abu Dhabi on November 10-11, Witkoff says
US envoy Steve Witkoff says Washington will mediate working-level Russia-Ukraine talks in Abu Dhabi on November 10-11, the first such round since February.
At a glance
- US special envoy Steve Witkoff said on Monday the United States will mediate working-level talks between Russia and Ukraine in Abu Dhabi on November 10-11.
- The agenda: post-war security arrangements, de-escalation, humanitarian help and next steps toward peace.
- US negotiators will first meet France, Germany, Britain, the EU and NATO in Brussels this week on security guarantees and Ukraine's rebuilding.
- It would be the first formal three-way round since February. Russia has not yet confirmed the dates or who it will send.
- Ukraine says it has intelligence that Russia is preparing another large attack on its energy and transport network around the talks.
Russian and Ukrainian negotiators are due to meet in Abu Dhabi on November 10 and 11 for talks mediated by the United States, US special envoy Steve Witkoff announced on Monday. It would be the first formal three-way round on ending the war since February, when talks stalled after the US and Israel went to war with Iran.
Witkoff said the "working-level" meetings in the capital of the United Arab Emirates would cover post-war security arrangements, de-escalation, humanitarian efforts and next steps toward peace. A senior US official said Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump's son-in-law, are expected to lead the American side. Moscow has not yet confirmed the dates or named its delegation.
Brussels first: the European track this week
Before Abu Dhabi, US negotiators will meet representatives of France, Germany, Britain, the European Union and NATO in Brussels this week. Witkoff said that meeting will deal with three questions Europe sees as central to any deal: security guarantees for Ukraine, Europe's security set-up after the war, and money to rebuild Ukraine.
That split reflects how the talks have been organised all year. Washington talks to Moscow and Kyiv about ending the fighting, while European governments, which would carry much of the cost of guarantees and reconstruction, push to have their say on what comes after.
How the talks got back on track
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| January–early February 2026 | First US-Russia-Ukraine rounds held in Abu Dhabi |
| February 2026 | Last formal three-way round ends without a breakthrough |
| Late February | US-Israel war with Iran begins; Ukraine talks stall |
| October 2026 | Witkoff meets Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg; Putin agrees to a new round |
| Late October | Trump and Putin speak by phone, mostly about Ukraine, according to the Kremlin |
| November 2 | Witkoff announces Abu Dhabi talks for November 10-11 |
So far, Putin's only clear concession has been agreeing to talk again. Russia still holds most of the territory it has seized in eastern and southern Ukraine and has not moved from its demand that Kyiv give up the rest of the Donetsk region. Ukraine refuses to cede land it controls.
Strikes continue while dates are set
Fighting has not slowed. Russia and Ukraine trade large drone and missile attacks almost every night, and Russian strikes have repeatedly knocked out power in Kyiv, Kharkiv and other cities as winter approaches.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine has intelligence that Russia is preparing another massive attack on Ukraine's energy and transport facilities around the time of the talks. A Kremlin aide, Yury Ushakov, has in turn accused Kyiv of undermining the chances of quickly resuming negotiations through Ukrainian strikes deep inside Russia.
A local truce around Oleshky in the Kherson region, agreed so aid could reach civilians, ended at the start of November after Moscow refused to extend it.
Why the dates matter beyond Europe
The war has pushed up prices of wheat, fertiliser and fuel worldwide, including in Pakistan and South Asia, which buy grain and edible oil shipped from the Black Sea. A credible ceasefire track would ease pressure on shipping insurance and food prices, though markets have reacted cautiously to earlier rounds that produced little.
The Abu Dhabi meeting also lands a week after the US midterm elections on November 3, when the result in Congress could shape how much support Washington keeps giving Kyiv.
The next concrete step is the Brussels meeting later this week, followed by Moscow's confirmation, or not, of its delegation for November 10.
Questions people are asking
When and where are the next Russia-Ukraine peace talks?
The US says working-level talks between Russia and Ukraine, mediated by Washington, will take place in Abu Dhabi, UAE, on November 10 and 11, 2026. Moscow has not yet confirmed them.
What will be discussed at the Abu Dhabi talks?
According to US envoy Steve Witkoff, the talks will cover post-war security arrangements, de-escalation, humanitarian efforts and next steps toward a peace deal.
