Ukrainian, American and Russian officials are scheduled to hold security discussions in the United Arab Emirates on Friday, the Kremlin announced, as part of ongoing diplomatic efforts aimed at ending the war in Ukraine.

The meeting follows high‑level talks in Moscow this week between senior US negotiators and Russian President, Vladimir Putin over a US‑proposed peace framework.

The conflict, Europe’s deadliest since World War II, has spurred renewed diplomatic activity in recent months, though Moscow and Kyiv remain deeply divided, especially over territorial issues that would shape any post‑war settlement.

According to a statement from the Kremlin, the US team, led by envoy Steve Witkoff, held extended discussions with President Putin in Moscow that ran into the early hours of Friday. Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov described the talks as productive.

Witkoff and the American delegation are now en route to Abu Dhabi to continue negotiations.

A Russian delegation, headed by General Igor Kostyukov, director of Russia’s GRU military intelligence, is also expected to arrive in the UAE “in the coming hours,” Ushakov said.

“It was agreed that the first meeting of a trilateral working group on security issues will take place today in Abu Dhabi,” Ushakov told reporters.

He emphasised that Russia was “genuinely interested in resolving (the conflict) through political and diplomatic means,” but added that Moscow would persist in pursuing its military objectives “until that happens.”

Witkoff has previously suggested that the two sides might be close to resolving their differences, saying at one point he believed talks were “down to one issue,” though he did not specify what that issue was.

Footage released by the Kremlin showed President Putin smiling and shaking hands with Witkoff, as well as Jared Kushner, son‑in‑law of US President Donald Trump, and Josh Gruenbaum, a senior White House adviser, showing the high‑profile nature of the diplomacy.

The announcement of the trilateral discussions came shortly after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said a draft peace agreement was “nearly, nearly ready.” Zelensky also said he and President Trump had reached agreement on aspects of post‑war security guarantees, and that British and French forces had committed to roles on the ground under the proposed deal.

Despite these claims, major points of contention remain.

Russia continues to occupy about 20 per cent of Ukrainian territory and is pressing for full control of the eastern Donbas region as part of any agreement.

Kyiv has rejected the notion of ceding land, warning that such concessions would only embolden Moscow and that it will not sign a peace treaty that fails to deter future aggression.

At this stage, full details of the planned talks in the UAE have not been made public, and it remains unclear whether Ukrainian and Russian officials will engage in direct, face‑to‑face negotiations.