Zelenskiy says battlefield gains sharpen Ukraine's hand before Abu Dhabi talks

Volodymyr Zelenskiy used his nightly video address on Monday to argue that Ukrainian forces are improving his country's leverage ahead of Tuesday's talks. The three-sided meeting in Abu Dhabi, involving Ukrainian, Russian and US negotiators, is the first since February aimed at moving toward an end to the war, now more than four and a half years old.

The Ukrainian president said top military commander Mykhailo Drapatyi had briefed him on the front, pointing to what Zelenskiy described as record daily and weekly Russian losses. He also credited Ukraine's long-range strikes on Russian targets, including oil industry sites, with adding pressure. In his words, every completed task and successful defensive operation strengthens Ukraine, and above all strengthens it in negotiations.

Zelenskiy directed his appeal at Washington, saying the United States must convince Russia to end the war, which he argued Moscow has the power to do. Russian commanders reject the idea that Ukraine is retaking ground, insisting their forces keep advancing along all sectors of the front.

The 1,200-km front line has stayed largely static for months, and Ukrainian officials say Russia's slow push westward through the eastern Donetsk region has slowed further. Moscow holds about 20% of Ukrainian territory, and President Vladimir Putin says seizing the entire eastern Donbas remains his objective.

Kyrylo Budanov, Zelenskiy's chief of staff, said on his way to Abu Dhabi that keeping the diplomatic track alive mattered, and that Kyiv would push prisoner exchanges and other humanitarian matters. Ukraine's delegation is being led by Rustem Umerov, who heads foreign intelligence.