Russian, Ukrainian and US negotiators are heading to Abu Dhabi today for the first trilateral talks since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022 – here's what we know
These talks are crunch time for Ukraine and a chance to see whether Moscow is really serious about peace or just playing games, our correspondent writes from Kyiv
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says the talks are "a step – hopefully towards ending the war", adding the meeting will focus on the status of Ukraine's eastern Donbas region
At the World Economic Forum in Davos yesterday, he said he had reached an agreement with Trump on future US security guarantees for Ukraine in the event of a deal
It comes after Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump's envoys held what the Kremlin called "useful" but "very frank" talks in Moscow
Speaking on Air Force One last night, Trump said he believed Putin and Zelensky "both want to make a deal", adding "we'll find out"
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Watch: Putin and Zelensky both want peace deal, Trump says
Edited by Johanna Chisholm
Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters in Davos that negotiations will be “all about the land” and Ukraine’s line in the eastern Donbas region is one he is adamant not to cross.
Russian forces have been slowly churning through the Luhansk and Donetsk regions – also known as the Donbas.
Russia currently occupies most of the Luhansk region and large parts of the Donetsk region, but slow gains have come at a significant cost of manpower.
The Institute for the Study of War have estimated it would take Russian forces until August 2027 to conquer the rest of Donetsk.
Zelensky has consistently said he won't leave Ukraine's Donbas to Russia, saying Moscow could use it as a springboard for future attacks.
The US proposal for Ukraine's industrial heartland in Donbas is for a demilitarised and free economic zone in exchange for security guarantees for Kyiv.
But questions remain over whether Vladimir Putin will agree to the US plan.
Zelensky visited Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort for talks just after Christmas
While we wait to hear more about today's Abu Dhabi meetings, here's a non-exhaustive history of recent talks on ending the war in Ukraine:
Riyadh, March 2025
Ukraine and Russia agreed to a naval ceasefire in the Black Sea in separate deals with the US after three days of talks in Saudi Arabia.
Istanbul, May 2025
Delegations from Ukraine and Russia agreed to swap 1,000 prisoners of war each after holding the first face-to-face talks with each other since Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Anchorage, August 2025
A first meeting since 2018 saw Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin shake hands in Alaska – though there was little progress made towards peace.
Speaking to reporters after talks, Putin said an unspecified "agreement" had been reached, but stressed the "root causes" of the conflict need to be eliminated before peace could be achieved.
Geneva, November 2025
American and Ukrainian negotiators met in Switzerland for talks on a 28-point US-backed peace plan.
After the original draft was criticised by some as being too favourable to the Kremlin, an updated peace framework was drawn up. Zelensky said this included "signals that President [Donald] Trump's team is hearing us".
Donald Trump welcomed Vladimir Putin to Alaska for talks in August last year
Moscow, December 2025
The Kremlin said five hours of talks between Putin and Trump's top negotiator – Steve Witkoff – had failed to produce a breakthrough, as parts of the new peace plan remained unacceptable to Moscow, including over territory.
Berlin, December 2025
A meeting between European officials and a Kyiv delegation led to the US offering Nato-like security guarantees, while Zelensky signalled for the first time that he might "compromise" on ambitions to join Nato in exchange for strong guarantees.
Miami, December 2025
Shortly before Christmas, US and Ukrainian envoys focused on aligning positions on a US-backed 20-point plan in Miami talks, while US officials also met Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev.
Mar-a-Lago, December 2025
Zelensky and Trump met at the president's resort in Florida, where the the Ukrainian leader said talks on a revised peace plan were "close to 95%" done.
Davos, January 2026
Zelensky declared that peace talks had reached "the last mile" after he met Trump on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum, where he said the pair reached agreement on post-war security guarantees.
The rubble of a house is seen after an alleged drone strike in the Kramatorsk district of Ukraine
Four people, including a five-year-old boy, have been killed in a Russian drone strike in Ukraine, the Ukrainian emergency services says.
It says the attack occurred in a private residential area in the village of Cherkaske, in the Kramatorsk district of eastern Ukraine.
It adds that the bodies of two people, including a child, were recovered by emergency workers from the rubble of a destroyed house.
The Donetsk Regional Prosecutor's Office adds that two of the people killed were a 32-year-old man and his 5-year-old son, with a further five people injured – including the deceased child's mother.
Vitaliy Shevchenko
Russia editor, BBC Monitoring
Zelenksy, in Davos yesterday, said he discussed Donbas with President Trump
President Volodymyr Zelensky says the trilateral talks taking place in the UAE today will focus on the status of Ukraine's eastern Donbas region.
"The Donbas issue is key. It will be discussed as will be the modality of how the three sides see it," he tells journalists via a voice message.
Speaking about the talks in Abu Dhabi – which he will be sending a Ukrainian delegation to – he says: "It's a step – hopefully towards ending the war – but different things can happen."
The Ukrainian president also says he discussed Donbas with President Trump in Davos yesterday.
According to him, the two presidents also "finalised security guarantees" for Ukraine and discussed additional air defence missiles necessary for Ukraine to intercept Russian ballistic missiles.
"I'm hoping for a positive result," he adds.Vitaliy Shevchenko
Russia editor, BBC Monitoring
Emergency service tents have been set up in Kyiv for those whose homes are without electricity or heating following Russian missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure
The mayor of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv has reiterated calls for residents to evacuate following repeated Russian attacks on the city's heating systems.
Writing on social media, Vitaly Klitschko says that 1,940 high-rise apartment blocks in the capital are still without heating following Russian strikes on 9 and 20 January.
"Let me put this bluntly: this is an extremely difficult situation, and it can get worse," Klitschko writes, as he advises people to stock up on necessities.
"If anyone can leave the city and move somewhere where there is power and heating, do not reject this option."
He adds that "resilient points" are being set up across the city, where temperatures have been hovering at -10C (14F).
Workers from a Ukrainian energy company perform repairs at a substation in Kyiv on Tuesday
Overnight, both Ukraine and Russia have reported drone attacks.
In messages posted on Telegram, Penza Oblast governor Oleg Melnichenko claims that a drone attack caused a fire at an oil depot in Penza, an area south east of Moscow.
While in Ukraine, the general staff of the armed forces has reported an air attack that saw drones hitting 12 locations overnight.
Recent Russian strikes on key infrastructure targets have been leaving many people in Ukraine to face freezing temperatures without heating or power.
In an update on Telegram this morning, the mayor of Kyiv, where temperatures have been hovering at around -10C, says there are currently 1,940 multi-story buildings without heating. He says this is due to attacks carried out earlier this month.
Ukraine is facing an acute energy crisis after months of relentless Russian attacks on its infrastructure. Zelensky says Moscow is deliberately exploiting the ferociously cold winter, leaving tens of thousands of people across Ukraine without power, heating or running water.
Most of the country's conventional power plants have been hit or damaged in Russian air strikes, and Zaporizhzhia – Ukraine's biggest power plant – has been controlled by Russia since the start of the war. The future of the site is one of the most critical points of any possible future peace deal between Ukraine and Russia.
Putin and Trump met face-to-face in Anchorage, Alaska, in August 2025
Yesterday in Davos, Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters "it's all about the land", and it remains one of the unresolved issues in bringing an end to the war.
Russia is still pushing on territory, with Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov saying that the matter should be resolved "according to the formula agreed upon in Anchorage" if there is any hope of a deal.
He is referring to the meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska last August. Although no agreement was reached at the meeting, a 28-point-plan that later emerged was widely seen as being geared towards Moscow's demands.
It would have seen Russia claiming the Donetsk Oblast region, and Ukraine's army cut to 600,000 people.
Following talks with US negotiators and European leaders, an updated 20-point-plan emerged in December, which Zelensky described as the "main framework for ending the war".
The updated draft proposes a freeze on the line of contact in the east, that would create a de-militarised free economic zone.
Zelensky also made clear that any Ukrainian pull back of forces in Donetsk would have to be matched by Russia, with any free economic zone under Kyiv's administration.
It also puts forward plans for security guarantees for Ukraine and a military of 800,000.
Sarah Rainsford
Eastern Europe correspondent, in Kyiv
Zelensky has frequently said he won't leave Ukraine's Donbas to Russia, saying Moscow would use the region as a springboard to attack the rest of the country
Ukraine has gone out of its way to engage and show willing as Donald Trump’s White House leads efforts to bring peace here.
It has to: it can’t defend itself against Russian aggression without US support, so it needs to keep President Trump on side.
Of course, Ukrainians also genuinely want an end to the fighting. So, from Kyiv’s perspective, these first, trilateral talks are a kind of crunch time.
The focus will be US security guarantees for Ukraine – and, as Volodymyr Zelensky puts it, it's a chance to see whether Moscow is really serious about peace or just playing games.
Ukraine suspects the latter. After almost four years of all-out war, Russian missile and drone attacks are now targeting civilian energy infrastructure here with renewed intensity.
In the depths of a bitterly cold winter, Vladimir Putin is trying to freeze Ukraine into submission.
But in the negotiations, the big public stumbling point for now is still land, and Russia’s demand to be gifted areas it has failed to win on the battlefield.
Politicians often talk about red lines. But Ukraine’s line in the eastern Donbas region is one Zelensky is adamant he won’t cross.
Today's Abu Dhabi talks follow a Moscow handshake between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner
After a packed schedule of meetings and speeches from world leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos this week (more on that here), let's take a look at what we're keeping across today:
Fresh round of Ukraine talks in the Middle East: A Ukrainian delegation is heading to the United Arab Emirates for trilateral talks with both US and Russian officials. It's the first time all three parties will be meeting since Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine nearly four years ago.
And what's on the agenda? There's scant detail on when the talks are set to begin today, but Volodymyr Zelensky says they're due to last for two days in Abu Dhabi.
But no Trump, Putin or Zelensky: The three leaders won't be present for now, but Russian President Vladimir Putin has been involved in discussions, as he met yesterday with the US representatives for the talks Trump envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
Meanwhile, in Davos: The World Economic Forum continues for a final day today, though with a more slimmed-down programme of speakers as world leaders have begun to make their way home.
Robert Wilkie tells the Today programme that he believes Putin still wants to "subsume Ukraine"
"I have absolutely no confidence that Putin will concede on any major points in these negotiations," says Robert Wilkie, who served as veterans affairs secretary in the first Trump administration.
"I am not an optimist on this, I think Putin is in this to the death," he tells the BBC Radio 4's Today programme. "The only thing that stops him is a totally massive defeat on the battlefield."
Wilkie says his former colleague, Keith Kellogg – Trump's former special envoy to Ukraine – "was very frustrated that people didn't take Putin for his word".
"His word has been for 30 years that he wants to subsume Ukraine," Wilkie says.
Steve Witkoff (L) and Jared Kushner (R)
The United Arab Emirates is playing host to negotiators from Russia, Ukraine and the US today, for talks that officials say will be the first meeting attended by all three countries since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine nearly four years ago.
What we know
What we don't know
Thursday was a heavy day of diplomacy in Davos, Switzerland, where world leaders have been meeting for the annual World Economic Forum this week. Here's a quick look at the main lines from yesterday:
Greenland
There was plenty of relief in Europe, following Trump's comments made the night before, in which he appeared to back away from his position that the US must acquire Greenland. He announced that there was a "framework of a future deal" with Nato Secretary Mark Rutte.
Since Wednesday though, little detail has emerged on what that framework might entail. Nato Military Committee chair Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone said the deal is at a "very early stage", adding "we are still waiting on direction". In an interview with Fox Business, Trump said it would allow "total access", and "we're getting everything we want at no cost".
Board of Peace
Trump launched his new Board of Peace at a signing ceremony with global leaders.
The board was originally conceived of as a way to implement part of the Gaza ceasefire plan. But Trump and his officials suggested it will work on a range of global issues, with the US president saying it has the potential to be "one of the most consequential bodies ever created".
UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said the UK won't be signing up yet, amid concerns about the participation of Russian President Vladimir Putin. None of the UN Security Council's permanent members – China, France, or Russia, have committed participation so far.
Ukraine
The US president then met with Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky. After the meeting, Zelensky told reporters the pair has agreed that a document on the issue of security guarantees was "done" – but it still needs to be signed and go to "national parliaments".
And in a stern address to Davos delegates, Zelensky said that Europe too often avoids "action", calling on it to do more to "protect itself".
Putin held a late-night meeting in Moscow with Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner
Top US negotiators held late-night talks in Moscow with President Vladimir Putin on a US-drafted plan to end the Ukraine war.
According to reports, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov referred to the talks as "frank" – but Russia is still pushing issues over territory when it comes to a peace deal.
"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," he said, referring to last year's Trump-Putin summit in Alaska.
Pictures show the Russian president shaking hands with Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff, and his son-in-law Jared Kushner during their meeting at the Kremlin.
Before heading to the Russian capital, Witkoff had indicated that he was optimistic about the prospect of a deal to end the conflict, telling reporters as he left the Davos summit: "I think we've got it down to one issue and we have discussed iterations of that issue, and that means it's solvable."
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Speaking to reporters on board Air Force One on his way back from Davos on Thursday, President Trump told reporters he believed the Russian and Ukrainian presidents now want to make a deal.
"There were times when Putin didn't want to make a deal. Times when Zelensky didn't want to make a deal. And it was like opposite times. Now I think they both want to make a deal. We'll find out.''
He said he had "good" talks with Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky yesterday, adding: "It would be nice to end that war."
Following their meeting at Davos, Zelensky said the issue of land has not been solved yet, adding that trilateral talks today might provide the two sides with "variants".
Paul Kirby
Europe digital editor
For Volodymyr Zelensky, getting the US president on board with security guarantees is an important achievement, but the focus now will be on trilateral talks with the US and Russia that are set to take place in the United Arab Emirates.
Trump envoy Steve Witkoff is heading to Abu Dhabi from Moscow and Zelensky's already named his team to take part which includes his top officials.
Witkoff is optimistic the one big issue dividing the two sides is "solvable" – and Zelensky has confirmed it's "all about the land" in eastern Ukraine. Will Putin agree to the US plan for a demilitarised, free-trade zone in Donbas or will he continue to demand Russian control?
The pace of diplomacy has clearly accelerated, but those US security guarantees won't be signed any time soon. Zelensky says they'll have to be ratified first by the US Congress and Ukrainian parliament.
And we don't yet know what they involve – Kyiv wanted up to 50 years of iron-clad US commitment to come to Ukraine's aid if it comes under attack. That was always optimistic.
But Zelensky is convinced that without a Trump "backstop", the Coalition of the Willing – led by the UK and France – will not be enough.
Adam Goldsmith
Live reporter
Today's trilateral meeting follows Zelensky and Trump's sit-down on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum
Russia, Ukraine and the US are set to hold trilateral peace talks in the Middle East today – marking what's expected to be the first time all three countries have attended a meeting together since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The summit follows a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Moscow last night.
Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov describes the talks as "substantive, constructive and very frank", but territorial issues remain a sticking point.
Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky agrees, as he told reporters in Davos yesterday: "It's all about the land. This is the issue which is not solved yet."
But, after a handshake with Donald Trump on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, Zelensky says he has now at least reached an agreement with the US on security guarantees – should a deal be agreed.
We'll catch you up with the last few days of diplomacy as we build up to the Abu Dhabi talks later today.
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