The European Commission and European Council will send senior officials to US-hosted Ukraine-Russia peace talks in Abu Dhabi on November 10 and 11, despite objections from the Kremlin, according to Euronews. The two-day trilateral talks are scheduled to begin on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, according to The Hindu.
The Commission and Council will send a joint team of senior officials, according to Euronews. The E3 countries, France, Germany and the United Kingdom, will join at national security advisor level, and NATO will be represented by Chief of Staff Geoffrey Van Leeuwen, according to a NATO official cited by Euronews. France has said European officials will attend, according to NPR World. Those talks would be the first three-way round of negotiations since February, according to the same report.
The Ukrainian delegation is led by Rustem Umerov, with Kyrylo Budanov, Sergiy Kyslytsya and Davyd Arakhamia, according to Euronews. The Russian delegation is led by Vladimir Medinsky, with Sergei Ryabkov and Mikhail Galuzin. The US delegation is led by Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. Security guarantees are topping the agenda, according to Russia and Ukraine, The Hindu reports.
The Kremlin has made clear it does not welcome a European role at the table. Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov said European envoys would not be invited to the negotiating table and would not be allowed into the room if they flew to Abu Dhabi, according to The Hindu. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Europeans would be needed later, in broader talks, the outlet reports.
Euronews reports that the EU and E3 will attend and that both institutions are willing to engage directly with Russia. It says it is unclear whether that face-to-face contact will happen. No response has been published from the US, Ukraine or the EU to Ushakov’s claim that Europeans will not be allowed into the room.
The gap between the two sides is wide. Putin reportedly demands that Ukraine withdraw from four annexed regions, abandon its NATO bid and accept military limits. Zelenskyy reportedly rejects ceding territory. Kushner said a multilateral format would be organised "if progress is made". Zelenskyy called his principles post "dangerous". Italy’s Meloni and Poland’s Sikorski have pressed for an EU envoy and for East European interests to be represented.
Euronews reports that Costa will raise the envoy issue at the informal EU summit in Dublin, which follows the Abu Dhabi meeting. The talks open on Tuesday and run for two days, so the Dublin discussions are expected shortly after they end.
Several gaps remain. NPR World was available only as a headline and short excerpt, so its details could not be checked beyond the France statement. The Hindu article is partial and cut off mid-text, so later details may be missing. Kushner’s comment on the multilateral format was made last week and did not specify a location or date for any later round. Euronews says it is unclear whether a face-to-face meeting with the Russian delegation will take place, and no confirmation has been found.
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This article was written with AI assistance from the published reporting listed above. It is part of the World Brief daily news podcast.