Politico: There Was No Breakthrough In The Abu Dhabi Talks, But There Have Been Changes
- 12.11.2026, 9:59
Jared Kushner called it the “only way” to move forward.
When Jared Kushner entered the briefing room to announce the results of the two-day peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, he didn’t even try to hide how difficult they had been.
“The reality is that there is currently no trust between the parties. The discussions were quite difficult,” said Donald Trump’s son-in-law and special envoy during a briefing following the talks, according to Politico. According to participants in the talks, both sides discussed all the most complex issues, including the most difficult one—the fate of disputed territories—and each side staunchly defended its own objectives.
The mood cooled noticeably from the first day of talks to the second. On Tuesday, when the talks lasted four and a half hours, Ukrainian officials in Abu Dhabi familiar with the discussions described them as “constructive.” But on Wednesday, when the meeting ended after just two hours, the best description they could come up with was “neutral,” journalists note.
Few in Ukraine believed that this week’s talks would yield a breakthrough
It is reported that the most high-profile announcement concerned a significant issue—the planned prisoner exchange, which, according to Kushner, will be the largest since the war began. But even the final numbers could not be agreed upon.
However, despite the cautious statements, the meeting marked an important milestone on the difficult path to peace after nearly five years of war.
Here’s what you need to know about the current situation.
What was discussed
According to media reports—everything. According to Kushner, over the course of two days, there wasn’t a single important issue that wasn’t raised. The territorial issue, he said, will undoubtedly be “the most difficult” to resolve.
As Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported, Ukrainian negotiators scored an important victory on the first day—they managed to convince the Americans to accept Ukrainian data on where the front line actually runs and exactly how much Ukrainian territory Russia has actually seized (much less than Moscow claims).
A quick resolution to this issue is unlikely, although U.S. officials have privately noted that both sides have shown some flexibility in their approaches to territorial disputes.
Zelenskyy continues to insist—and it seems U.S. mediators agree—that issues concerning the fate of Ukrainian territory can only be discussed at the leadership level. But such a meeting is still a long way off. “It’s clear that there isn’t much trust or warmth between the leaders,” Kushner noted.
What Was Agreed Upon
A major prisoner exchange—possibly the largest since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022. But even this is not yet a final decision: Kushner made it clear that the agreement will depend on Vladimir Putin’s approval, which he plans to secure during his visit to Moscow.
“One of the positive developments was that we agreed to carry out the largest humanitarian prisoner release—we will finalize the numbers tomorrow,” Kushner emphasized.
He added that, together with Steve Whitcoff, another of Trump’s envoys, he would travel “to Moscow to meet with President Putin to discuss what we talked about today and try to make further progress on certain issues.”
Ukrainian negotiators stated that “strict instructions” from Moscow limited their Russian counterparts’ room for maneuver, which made the negotiations even more difficult.
What’s Next
The trip to Moscow is crucial. Kushner stated that another of his main goals in his conversation with Putin would be to convince him to allow the Europeans to participate in the next round of negotiations. “I very much hope that tomorrow in Moscow, Steve and I will be able to secure Putin’s agreement on this. If he gives his blessing, I think we’ll be able to make much more progress,” Kushner replied to a question from Politico.
The Americans then plan to travel to Dublin to meet with Zelenskyy in person and try to advance the negotiation process. The Ukrainians want to set a date for the next round of talks as soon as possible, as they hope to reach an agreement by the end of this year.
Meanwhile, Russia is stepping up its attacks on Ukraine’s power grid and energy facilities, and another winter is just around the corner.
The Main Shift
Perhaps the biggest shift in recent days has been the change in the U.S.’s own position, the article states. This has never been merely a matter of negotiations between Russia and Ukraine. Ever since Trump returned to power nearly two years ago, Kyiv and Brussels have been trying to convince Washington to take their arguments more seriously. For Ukraine’s European allies, this persistence appears to have paid off.
Kushner and Whitcoff now want European officials to join the next round of talks—to move on to discussing one of Putin’s most sensitive issues: relations with NATO and the future European security architecture.
“We need the Europeans at the negotiating table. We’ve spoken directly to President Putin and his team about this several times, explaining that the only way to resolve this issue is to have them at the table with us. And I think they’re receptive to this idea,” Kushner said at a briefing.
According to Ukrainian negotiators, the Russians’ stance began to soften only after the U.S. started discussing a post-war settlement for both sides.
As for Ukraine, the Americans’ attitude has noticeably changed there as well. Just a few weeks ago, Trump furiously demanded that Zelenskyy be replaced following a scandal over the Ukrainian president’s criticism of Trump’s diesel fuel deal with Putin. Russia, according to Trump at the time, had been behaving “normally” toward Ukraine.
Now, however, Kushner is carefully choosing warm words for the Ukrainian negotiating team and its “great efforts” in Abu Dhabi. “I think they very, very tenaciously defended their positions, were very constructive, and I think the session turned out to be very productive,” he emphasized. The Ukrainians also expressed their gratitude to the American side.
The Main Question for Europe
It’s one thing to be invited to actual negotiations with Russia and Ukraine. So far, the Europeans haven’t even been given that chance. It’s quite another matter to participate and actually influence the course of the talks when they finally take place. To do this, Europe needs to choose its representatives wisely, the media reports.
Zelenskyy stated that he wants to be kept informed about who will take on the role of Europe’s spokesperson and emphasized that it must be a single person. He also wants Europe to decide on this by the end of the month.
However, Europe’s approach is still far from coordinated. Representatives from the European Commission, the European Council, NATO, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Italy were present on the sidelines of the talks in Abu Dhabi.
Trying to be diplomatic, Kushner called this situation “strong,” but added: “If Europe could identify a single person to speak on its behalf, that would be a greater achievement than even convincing the Russians to let them into the negotiations.”
A Dangerous Moment for Europe
If these talks have achieved nothing else, then after months of worrying that it would be left out, Europe now finds itself—provided, of course, that Putin agrees—at the very center of the most dangerous negotiations in the continent’s recent history.
The key question is to what extent discussions on changes to the continental security architecture—which is based on NATO—will be linked to the peace talks on Ukraine, the article states.
Europeans have long been pushing for Ukraine to receive the strongest possible security guarantees—to prevent another Russian attack after the war ends. U.S. officials, meanwhile, want to explore the idea of collective defense similar to that of NATO, which could include the Alliance itself as a guarantor.
Officials in European capitals say the framework of these talks will be crucial. Europe is ready to discuss a broader security framework for the continent to allay Russia’s concerns—but only in parallel with the Ukrainian peace process. And they are not prepared to agree to any sweeping reforms until peace is achieved.