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Russia will send a high-level delegation of diplomats and senior military officials to trilateral peace talks with the United States and Ukraine next week. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed the lineup to the Interfax news agency ahead of the meetings scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday in Abu Dhabi.
Senior Officials Join Russia’s Negotiating Team
Vladimir Medinsky, a Kremlin aide, will again lead Russia’s delegation as chief negotiator. Joining him for the first time will be Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, who oversees Russia’s relations with North and South America and handles arms control, non-proliferation, and Iran’s nuclear program.
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The military side of the delegation includes Yuri Zhigarlovsky, a deputy chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff. That body is responsible for military planning and operations. Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin and military intelligence chief Igor Kostyukov will also attend, as they have in previous rounds of talks.
Putin Meets Delegation Ahead of Talks
Before departing, all delegation members met President Vladimir Putin on Friday at a Russian Security Council meeting. The gathering was partly devoted to preparations for the upcoming Abu Dhabi negotiations. During the televised opening, Putin thanked the United Arab Emirates for hosting the talks and said he wanted to discuss the team’s preparations directly.
However, most of the meeting took place behind closed doors. The Kremlin broadcast only the opening minutes, which is customary for such gatherings.
First Talks Since February
The Abu Dhabi meeting will be the first trilateral discussions since February. At that time, the United States and Israel launched a war against Iran, which effectively halted the mediation effort. Since then, US negotiators have pushed to reach a breakthrough in the conflict before winter conditions set in on the battlefield.
The talks aim to explore a path toward ending Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine. The inclusion of Ryabkov and a senior General Staff officer signals that Moscow is bringing broader expertise to the table this time. Whether the expanded delegation reflects a genuine shift in Russia’s negotiating position remains to be seen.
