On January 23, Russia said it would hold security talks with the US and Ukraine in Abu Dhabi, and affirmed that sustainable peace cannot be achieved if the territorial issue is not resolved. The information was released after a meeting lasting for many hours between President Vladimir Putin and US special envoys.
Kremlin Assistant Yuri Ushakov told reporters that the dialogue began just before midnight on January 22 and lasted about 4 hours, with a frank and useful atmosphere. According to Mr. Ushakov, the parties agreed on the next steps, in which Russia, the United States and Ukraine will participate in trilateral security dialogue.
The Russian side will be led by Admiral Igor Kostyukov at security talks. In parallel, Russian President Putin's special envoy, Mr. Kirill Dmitriev, will have a private exchange on economic issues with Mr. Steve Witkoff - President Donald Trump's special envoy. However, Mr. Ushakov does not consider this a major breakthrough.
According to Mr. Ushakov, in the meeting between President Putin and US representatives, Russia reaffirmed that if the territorial issue is not resolved according to the agreed formula in Alaska, there will be no opportunity to reach a long-term agreement.
He said that President Putin emphasized that Russia "really cares" about a diplomatic solution, but until that becomes a reality, Russia will continue to pursue the goals of a special military operation, especially when Russian forces are taking strategic initiative on the battlefield.
The meeting on the night of January 22nd was attended by President Vladimir Putin, Mr. Yuri Ushakov and Mr. Kirill Dmitriev on the Russian side. The US side included Mr. Steve Witkoff, Mr. Jared Kushner - Mr. Trump's son-in-law - and Mr. Josh Gruenbaum - a new senior advisor - appointed by President Donald Trump to the Peace Council, a mechanism aimed at handling conflicts around the world.
This is considered the next step in President Donald Trump's efforts to end the prolonged conflict in Europe, which is now nearly 4 years old.
