Negotiators from Ukraine, Russia and the United States are set to gather in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday, seeking to advance fraught talks on how to end the four-year war.
Photo for representation (AP)According to Russian state media, the Russian delegation has already arrived in Abu Dhabi, although it is unclear whether the US and Ukrainian representatives have arrived.
Also Read: Two Jaish terrorists killed in J&K’s Udhampur after encounter with security forces
Several rounds of diplomacy between the two sides have failed to reach an agreement to end Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II, which began when Russia invaded in February 2022.
A massive Russian drone and missile barrage in the run-up to the talks, hitting Ukraine’s energy grid and knocking out electricity and heating to temperatures well below freezing, threatens to overwhelm any chance of progress in the Emirati capital.
Also Read: Protests, Handshake Refusal, Message for Modi: 3 Days of Rahul Gandhi-Smriti Parliament Story
“Every such Russian strike confirms that Moscow’s attitude has not changed: they are betting on war and the destruction of Ukraine, and they do not take diplomacy seriously,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday.
“The work of our negotiating team will be adjusted accordingly,” he said, without elaborating.
The main sticking point is the long-term fate of the territory in eastern Ukraine.
Moscow is demanding that Kiev withdraw its troops from parts of the Donbass, including heavily fortified cities atop vast natural resources, as a precondition for any deal.
It also seeks international recognition that the land occupied by the aggression belongs to Russia.
Kiev has said the conflict should be suspended along the current front line and has rejected unilateral forces.
The talks – scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday – were postponed by the Kremlin last weekend due to scheduling issues between the three parties.
‘Prepare for the worst’ Ukraine’s delegation will be led by Security Council chief Rustem Umerov, a shrewd negotiator hailed by colleagues as a diplomatic “wonder” worker.
More Read
Russia’s top negotiator will be its director of military intelligence Igor Kostyukov, a naval officer blamed in the West for his role in the Ukraine invasion.
In the previous round of talks in Abu Dhabi last month, the US delegation was led by Steve Wittkoff, President Donald Trump’s ambassador-at-large.
Russia, which occupies about 20 percent of its neighbor, has threatened to seize the rest of the Donetsk region if talks fail.
Ukraine has warned that ceding ground would embolden Moscow and that it would not sign a deal that fails to prevent Russia from attacking again.
Kiev still controls about one-fifth of the Donetsk region.
Russia also claims the regions of Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia as its own, and occupies pockets of at least three other regions in eastern Ukraine.
On the battlefield, Russia is making gains at huge human cost, hoping it can outflank and outflank Kiev’s sprawling army.
On Tuesday, a Russian drone strike in the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhia killed three people and wounded at least 11 others, regional governor Ivan Fedorov said in a telegram.
Meanwhile, a 68-year-old man and a 38-year-old man were killed in a drone attack in Dnipropetrovsk region, regional administration head Mykola Lukashuk said on the messaging platform.
Sergei Lysak, who heads the Odessa military administration, confirmed that more than 20 residential buildings, two kindergartens and a school were damaged in the overnight attack in the southern Ukrainian city. No one was killed but two were injured.
Thousands of people have been left without heat and power in the Ukrainian capital this year after widespread Russian attacks severely damaged Kiev’s power grid.
After the first round of US-brokered talks in Abu Dhabi last month, Ukrainians doubted that a deal could be reached with Moscow.
“I think it’s all a show for the public,” Kiev resident Petro told AFP.
“We must prepare for the worst and hope for the best.”