The Ukraine war began almost four years ago. The end to the conflict still seems distant. However, for the first time in four years, three key parties are on Friday holding the first trilateral talks on the matter, which could eventually pave the way for a resolution of the conflict.
CNN reports that negotiators from Ukraine, Russia and the United States have sat down for talks in the United Arab Emirates. This is said to be the first official meeting where representatives from all three countries are present.
While the conflict is between Russia and Ukraine, the US holds the key to resolving the conflict, with President Donald Trump having met both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky for several rounds of talks to end the war.
In his most recent remarks, Trump said the Ukraine war was complex and more complicated than several other conflicts which he has helped bring to an end through mediation and other means, including threats, in his first year in office in the second term.
The talks are taking place in Abu Dhabi, with Ukraine being represented by a combination of military officials and diplomats. Russia, however, is reported to have sent only military representatives.
The Kremlin has said that the talks are primarily scheduled for Friday but may continue on Saturday if needed.
While there are many asks from both Moscow and Kyiv of each other to end the conflict, a key Russian demand remains that Ukraine leave the Donbas region.
The talks follow a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff. The US President’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, was also present during talks with Putin. The three-hour-long talks were described as ‘substantive, constructive, frank and confidential’.
Witkoff had said before Moscow talks that the negotiations were “down to one issue”. “We have discussed iterations of that issue, and that means it’s solvable,” he said in Davos on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum.
That one issue is said to be territory.
The trilateral meeting appeared out of nowhere, reportedly at the behest of Zelensky, who proposed the same to Trump at Davos. The “negotiator level” meeting is being seen as a key step forward.
Zelensky said in Davos that the talks are “a step – hopefully towards ending the war”, while adding that the meeting will focus on the status of Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region. The negotiations will be “all about the land”, he told reporters.
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One last night after departing from Davos, Trump said he believed Putin and Zelensky “both want to make a deal”, but added “we’ll find out”.