Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said officials from the United States, Russia and Ukraine are scheduled to hold their first trilateral meeting in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Friday and Saturday, a development he described as better than “no dialogue at all”. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday, Zelenskyy said the talks were planned after US representatives waited for the outcome of his meeting with US President Donald Trump. Zelenskyy also stated that documents related to ending the war are nearly finalised, raising fresh focus on diplomatic efforts to push negotiations forward.
Zelenskyy said US representatives were monitoring developments after his meeting with Trump before moving ahead with next steps. He added that the US side was heading to Moscow, while his team would engage separately with American representatives, before the three-way format begins in the UAE.
He noted that the UAE meeting may not begin “immediately” and could take time to materialise fully, but reiterated that it has been scheduled for Friday and Saturday. Zelenskyy did not provide details on the level of delegations or the exact format of the discussions.
Kremlin Confirms Putin Meeting
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Russian President Vladimir Putin planned to meet US representatives on Thursday evening. Separately, US envoy Steven Witkoff said he and Jared Kushner would travel to Moscow on Thursday night and then proceed to Abu Dhabi, where working-group meetings are scheduled.
Zelenskyy described his meeting with Trump as “good” and said the peace-related documents were close to completion. He also said Ukraine expects Russia to show readiness for compromise, stressing that it cannot be only Kyiv asked to make concessions.
The upcoming UAE meeting is being viewed as a notable diplomatic step amid continued uncertainty over the conditions required for any ceasefire or settlement, including issues of territory and security guarantees.
