During a public briefing, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio commented on the outcome of the first day of trilateral negotiations between Ukraine, the United States, and Russia, which resumed in Abu Dhabi on November 10, 2026, for the first time since February. According to the American diplomat, the consultations "were very productive" and required "serious efforts" from all sides. Rubio stressed that "a lot of work was done" at the table, but immediately cautioned against excessive optimism: in his assessment, it is still premature to say that a settlement is on the verge of being finalized within the next 24 hours.
Format of Negotiations and the Role of European Partners
Rubio paid special attention to the involvement of European countries in the negotiation process. He noted that currently, European representatives are not participating directly in the trilateral sessions, but are holding separate consultations with the Ukrainian delegation. Ahead of the meeting with the Russian side, the Ukrainian delegation held talks with US and European representatives, which included delegates from Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, as well as representatives of NATO and the European Commission. Rubio emphasized that Washington's ultimate goal is to expand the current format: going forward, not only the US, Ukraine, and Russia, but also European states should be represented at the negotiating table.
Special Envoys and Process Support
The US Secretary of State also highlighted the role of US Special Envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, who, according to him, accompany the entire negotiation process at every stage. According to the briefing, these two diplomats maintain close interaction with European partners and coordinate the positions of the parties between sessions. Kushner, in turn, stated in a separate announcement that Russia is ready to end the war provided that "proper conditions" are created for it, without disclosing the specific content of those conditions.
Context: First Contact Since February
The negotiations in Abu Dhabi marked the first trilateral contact between Kyiv, Washington, and Moscow since February 2026. This means the parties had not engaged in direct multilateral consultations in such a format for over eight months. The resumption of dialogue on the UAE platform is viewed by observers as an attempt to break the deadlock and create conditions for a broader settlement, although, as Rubio himself emphasizes, the path to a final agreement remains long and requires continued work at all levels.
What's Next
Following the briefing, Rubio did not announce specific timelines for the next rounds of talks or disclose details of the agreements reached. He limited himself to stating that "a lot of work has been done" and that the process will continue. European capitals, whose representatives participated in parallel consultations, had not published their own statements regarding the day's events by the time of publication. Next steps and the potential expansion of the format to include European participants remain key issues to be monitored in both Washington and Brussels.
