Russia Confirms Ukraine Peace Talks in Abu Dhabi as Melania Trump Prepares to Host Ceasefire Meeting

Developing story. Updated 14:48 UTC, November 3, 2026.

Russia confirmed on Tuesday that peace talks with Ukraine and the United States will go ahead next week in Abu Dhabi, Reuters reported. The talks will be held from November 10 to 11, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a conference call. Vladimir Medinsky, an aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin, will serve as Moscow chief negotiator at the talks.

US envoy Steve Witkoff said the United States would bring together delegations from Ukraine and Russia in Abu Dhabi to discuss post war security agreements and de-escalation. In a post outlining the agenda, Witkoff said the discussions would focus on post war security arrangements, de-escalation, humanitarian efforts and next steps toward peace. "We look forward to building on the progress made in Kyiv, Oslo, and St. Petersburg toward a comprehensive, durable peace agreement that delivers lasting security for generations to come," Witkoff said.

Separately, the White House said on Tuesday that First Lady Melania Trump will personally bring representatives of Russia and Ukraine together at the White House. She will deliver remarks on the ceasefire in Oleshky at 11:00 a.m. ET on Thursday, November 5, 2026, the White House said in a statement from the Office of the First Lady. Reuters reported the same announcement on Tuesday.

Two diplomatic tracks in one week

The White House meeting comes first, on Thursday, and the Abu Dhabi talks follow next week. The White House said Mrs. Trump independently initiated engagement between the two warring nations and successfully secured a ceasefire in Oleshky and the surrounding Kherson region. It called the effort an unprecedented diplomatic initiative by an American first lady.

That local ceasefire took effect on October 27, 2026. It allowed aid to reach the Russian occupied town of Oleshky and residents who wanted to leave to evacuate. The evacuees crossed into Ukraine on October 31, 2026, completing the operation. The truce covered Oleshky and the surrounding area only. It was not a general ceasefire, and fighting continued elsewhere.

A leaders meeting is also in play

The Kremlin also said on Tuesday that it hoped arrangements for a three way meeting between the leaders of Russia, China and the United States later in November would be finalised in the coming days, Reuters reported. "There is a general understanding among the participants in the potential meeting that it would be appropriate and highly useful," Peskov told reporters. The Kremlin has said before that President Vladimir Putin, President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping could meet on the sidelines of this month APEC summit in China. No agreement on that leaders meeting has been announced.

What the talks face

The war is now in its fifth year, after Russia launched its full scale invasion on February 24, 2022. The last US mediated talks took place in February 2026. Earlier US mediated rounds often yielded prisoner exchanges or limited agreements, but no settlement.

The Abu Dhabi round is a working level meeting, with negotiators rather than heads of state. Security guarantees, a recurring demand from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, are on the stated agenda. Territory remains a core disagreement between Kyiv and Moscow, the Associated Press reported. Neither side announced a change in position on Tuesday.

This is a developing story. The Orbit Post will update this article when the White House meeting takes place on Thursday and when the delegations meet in Abu Dhabi.