A face-to-face meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin would be a good step, U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Jared Kushner said following trilateral talks between Ukraine, the United States and Russia in Abu Dhabi.
“I think it would be great if they did it at some point. I think that would be a good thing,” Kushner told reporters. He clarified, however, that according to the information available to him, the Russian side wants to see more progress in the negotiations before a meeting between the two leaders takes place.
“Clearly, there is not a lot of trust or close dialogue between the leaders. I would also add that agreements like these take time,” the American envoy said.
The two-day talks in Abu Dhabi ended without a major breakthrough being announced on the main issue—the ending of the war. According to The Associated Press, the negotiations were the first meeting in this format since February and lasted just under two hours on the final day, following a four-hour session the previous day.
Kushner described the agreement on a large-scale release of prisoners of war as one of the positive results. Russian delegation head Vladimir Medinsky and Ukrainian negotiator Rustem Umerov confirmed the intention, with Moscow clarifying that the agreement had been reached “in principle.” The exchange is expected to take place over the next two or three weeks.
After the talks, Kushner said that he would travel to Moscow together with special envoy Steve Witkoff, where he would meet with Putin. The American representatives are then due to travel to Dublin for a meeting with Zelensky.
Unresolved issues include security guarantees after the end of the war, the fate of Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia, and the participation of European countries in a possible peace agreement. Moscow did not allow European representatives to attend the trilateral meeting in Abu Dhabi, while Kyiv insists that Europe be included at every stage of the diplomatic process.
Sources: apnews.com