US, Ukraine and European allies huddle in Abu Dhabi ahead of Russia talks

Steve Witkoff, the US Special Envoy for Peace Missions, went public Tuesday with a readout of a multi-party meeting in Abu Dhabi. Around the table: the United States, Ukraine, the European Commission, France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and NATO. The session came just before trilateral negotiations that will put the US, Russia and Ukraine in the same room.

The statement said Kyiv and its European partners made clear that Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity have to be protected, and that the country needs security guarantees. Attendees also worked through what post-conflict security arrangements in Europe should look like, with NATO cast as central to that picture. Everyone in the room signed on to cooperating toward a durable peace. Witkoff framed the meeting as a way to 'continue their close coordination on efforts to end the war' before the Russia talks begin.

The Abu Dhabi gathering is a bid to walk into the trilateral round with one coordinated position rather than a set of competing ones. That means Ukraine's territorial red lines and its demand for guarantees are now on record as shared with Brussels, Paris, Berlin, Rome, London and NATO. The trilateral talks will test whether Moscow engages with that package.