Putin agrees next steps with U.S. envoys, but territory remains key

Moscow. Russia has announced it will hold security talks with the United States and Ukraine in Abu Dhabi on Friday, but the Kremlin says a lasting peace will not be possible unless territorial issues are resolved.

The announcement followed a late-night meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and three U.S. envoys that lasted about four hours.

Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters the talks, which began shortly before midnight, were “substantive, constructive and very frank”, but stopped short of declaring any breakthrough.

He said Russian Admiral Igor Kostyukov would lead Moscow’s delegation at the three-way security talks, while investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev would hold separate discussions on economic issues with Steve Witkoff, an envoy of U.S. President Donald Trump.

“Most importantly, during these talks between our president and the Americans, it was reiterated that without resolving the territorial issue according to the formula agreed upon in Anchorage, there is no hope of achieving a long-term settlement,” Ushakov said, referring to last year’s Trump–Putin summit in Alaska.

Putin, he added, underlined that Russia was “sincerely interested” in a diplomatic solution, but warned that Moscow would continue pursuing its military objectives until an agreement is reached.

“This is especially true on the battlefield, where the Russian armed forces hold the strategic initiative,” Ushakov said.

Ukraine is facing one of the harshest winters since the war began, as Russia intensifies missile and drone attacks on energy infrastructure. With freezing temperatures, hundreds of thousands of residents in Kyiv and other cities have experienced prolonged power cuts and shortages of heating.

Ukrainian authorities cite the attacks as evidence that Moscow is not genuinely committed to peace, a claim Russia disputes, saying its advances have come at significant cost.

New U.S. participant

On the Russian side, the talks were attended by Putin, Ushakov and Dmitriev. The U.S. delegation included Witkoff, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, and Josh Gruenbaum, recently appointed as a senior adviser to Trump’s Board of Peace, a body tasked with addressing global conflicts.

The discussions form part of President Trump’s push to end what has become Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War Two, now nearing its fourth year.

Trump said on Wednesday that Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy would be “stupid” if they failed to reach a deal.

Witkoff said ahead of the Moscow meeting that months of negotiations had narrowed down to a single unresolved issue, widely believed to be territory.

One of the main sticking points is Russia’s demand that Ukraine surrender the remaining 20 percent of the eastern Donetsk region under Ukrainian control. President Zelenskiy has rejected giving up territory that Ukraine has defended at heavy cost.

Russia also insists Ukraine abandon its ambition to join NATO and opposes any deployment of NATO troops on Ukrainian soil after a peace agreement.

After meeting President Trump in Switzerland on Thursday, Zelenskiy said security guarantees for Ukraine had been finalised, but the territorial question remained unresolved.

Ushakov praised the United States for organising the Abu Dhabi meeting.

“The Americans have done a great deal to prepare for it, and they hope this meeting will open prospects for progress toward ending the conflict and reaching a peace agreement,” he said.