Two-day talks between the US, Russia, and Ukraine have concluded in Abu Dhabi, during which the parties made no progress on the main issue – control over Donbas. At the same time, Ukraine and Russia exchanged 314 prisoners of war, UNN reports, citing The Wall Street Journal.
Details
Among those returned to Ukraine were 150 servicemen and seven civilians. Most of them had been held captive since 2022, including defenders of Mariupol, which is occupied by Russia.
At the same time, Ukraine insists that the least problematic solution would be to remain along the current line of contact. Kyiv refuses to compromise on the country's territorial integrity. Russia, on the other hand, wants Ukraine to withdraw its troops from the territory of the Donetsk region.
The territorial issue is a key one that still needs to be resolved
Also, during the negotiations, the parties touched upon the topic of an energy truce.
During the previous round of talks in late January, the US proposed that each side refrain from striking the other's energy infrastructure as a gesture of goodwill. However, the agreement was short-lived and ceased to be effective when Russians recently launched hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles to disable Ukrainian energy facilities during severe frosts.
Instead, US President Donald Trump stated that Russia "adhered to the agreement" on the energy truce.
Recall
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that the next meetings on ending the war are planned in the near future, which will likely take place in the US.