Kremlin says new Russia-US-Ukraine talks may be held in Abu Dhabi

The possible venue emerges as Steve Witkoff is due to meet President Vladimir Putin later Wednesday, with Jared Kushner joining him

The Kremlin says a new round of trilateral talks between Russia, the United States and Ukraine may take place in Abu Dhabi.

The statement comes as Witkoff is due to meet Putin later Wednesday, with Kushner joining him, according to a U.S. official. Witkoff has already met Ukrainian officials this week; Volodymyr Zelenskiy called those talks very productive. Witkoff and Kushner have also told Kyiv directly that Putin is unwilling to negotiate and that Moscow's precondition remains securing the rest of the Donbas region.

President Trump has said Putin and Zelenskiy do not have to be in the same room to sign a peace deal, and has separately refused to sign any document himself. A German government spokesperson has said contacts with Washington suggest American interest in a negotiation process, and Finland's president has said he and Witkoff found progress toward a possible session in St Petersburg after meeting Zelenskiy.

Abu Dhabi has already featured in this process as a venue and investment hub, but holding a trilateral round there would be the first concrete scheduling step after weeks of statements about process that have not shifted Moscow's Donbas demand. Gathering Russia, the United States and Ukraine in one room, rather than the separate shuttle diplomacy used so far, would mark a change in format. Whether it leads anywhere depends on whether Moscow's stated openness to talks turns into flexibility on terms it has not shown in earlier rounds.