The U.S. will mediate working-level talks between Ukrainian and Russian officials in November, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff said Tuesday night. In a post on X, Witkoff said the discussions on Nov. 10 and 11 in Abu Dhabi would “focus on post-war security arrangements, de-escalation, humanitarian efforts, and next steps toward peace.”
He added that American negotiators would meet this week with representatives from European allies and the NATO alliance, including France, Germany and the United Kingdom, to discuss future security guarantees for Ukraine, which has been one of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s recurring demands for any deal with Russia.
“We look forward to building on the progress made in Kyiv, Oslo, and St. Petersburg toward a comprehensive, durable peace agreement that delivers lasting security for generations to come,” Witkoff said.
Ukraine and Russia have held several rounds of talks mediated by the U.S. during President Trump’s second term, often yielding prisoner exchanges or other low-level agreements, but Russian President Vladimir Putin, despite some controversial concessions from the Trump administration, has thus far refused to drop his demand for Ukraine to accept Russia’s unilateral annexation of some territory seized over the course of the grueling war.
Zelenskyy, likewise, has consistently ruled out accepting Russia’s seizure of territory by force, and many U.S. allies in Europe agree that legitimizing Putin’s land grab would set a dangerous precedent.
Witkoff’s latest announcement of planned talks at the working level — which generally means discussions among technocrats, not at the senior diplomatic or national leadership level — comes after a rare, localized cease-fire in the southern Ukrainian region of Kherson ended on Sunday.
The brief truce allowed humanitarian supplies into the small Russian-occupied city of Oleshky and the evacuation of an undisclosed number of residents.
The cease-fire, credited by both sides to U.S. first lady Melania Trump and Pope Leo, has raised some hope for more diplomatic progress toward ending the war sparked by Russia’s ongoing full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.
Russia has continued pummeling the rest of Ukraine during and after the local ceasefire, however, with more strikes coming overnight into Tuesday across the country.
At least 29 people were killed in a village in the southeast Ukrainian region of Zaporizhzhia, authorities said Tuesday.
In the northeast city of Kharkiv, the regional administration said a Russian strike hit a medical facility, wounding 25 people and forcing the evacuation of around 200 patients.
Russia’s defense ministry said Tuesday that it had carried out a “massive strike” on energy facilities across Ukraine, and port infrastructure in the Odesa region.
Moscow’s mayor said, meanwhile, that 500 Ukrainian drones heading toward the capital were destroyed overnight.
