Steve Witkoff said after meeting Vladimir Putin in Moscow that Ukraine-US-Russia trilateral talks had resumed and that another meeting had been scheduled. He also said European representatives would join the next round. That is a meaningful change in the proposed format after the Abu Dhabi talks, but it is not yet a diplomatic breakthrough.
Ukrainska Pravda, citing CNN, reported that Witkoff and Jared Kushner discussed the latest Ukraine talks with Putin. That previous round in Abu Dhabi ended without a breakthrough, according to the report. Before leaving Moscow, Witkoff described the resumption of trilateral talks as progress and said a new meeting had been set.
His statement on European participation matters separately. Russia’s war against Ukraine directly affects European security, so talks about ending it should not be reduced to a Kyiv-Washington-Moscow channel. Yet the report does not identify which countries or institutions would represent Europe, or whether every participant has already agreed to that composition.
For now, this is an announced plan to broaden the next round, not a settled negotiating mechanism. No date, venue, agenda or joint document has been made public. Kushner said the parties had held detailed discussions that he hoped would provide a basis for future multilateral talks. A further meeting, however, is not the same as agreement on peace terms.
The strongest case for a more optimistic reading comes from the envoys themselves: they describe progress and stress Europe’s importance. But the reported Abu Dhabi round produced no breakthrough, and the terms of the proposed new format remain undisclosed. The significance of the announcement lies in keeping a negotiating channel open and proposing a wider table, not in any announced settlement.
Sources
- Українська правда · Source date: 2026-11-12
Independent editorial content. WUA is not affiliated with any political party. 2026-11-12
Abu Dhabi Ukraine-US-Russia talks: Europe’s proposed seat matters more than a “productive” label