02/06/2026, 08:1102/06/2026, 08:11
After negotiations between Ukraine, Russia and the USA in Abu Dhabi, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expects the talks to continue “in the very near future”. The next round of negotiations to end the war will probably take place in the USA, said Zelensky in his evening video message from Kiev.
Negotiators from Ukraine, Russia and the USA had been speaking in the capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) since Wednesday. Zelensky did not say whether future talks in the US should also take place in this three-way format.
The second round of US-brokered talks between Russia and Ukraine took place in Abu Dhabi.image: keystone
Ukraine is ready for all formats of talks “that can really bring peace closer and make it reliable and lasting, so that Russia loses the appetite to continue fighting,” he said. “It is important that this war ends in such a way that Russia does not receive any reward for its aggression.”
US praises talks in Abu Dhabi
No detailed information was provided about the content of the meeting in Abu Dhabi. “The discussions were constructive and focused on creating preconditions for lasting peace,” wrote US special envoy Steve Witkoff, appointed by President Donald Trump, on the X platform.
Readout of Trilateral Peace Talks Hosted by the United Arab Emirates
Over February 4 and 5, delegations from the United States, Ukraine, and the Russian Federation met for the second trilateral meeting in Abu Dhabi to advance efforts to end the war in Ukraine. The discussions…
— Special Envoy Steve Witkoff (@SEPeaceMissions) February 5, 2026
Many military representatives from the Russian and Ukrainian sides took part in the talks. Witkoff said methods were discussed to reach a ceasefire and verify the cessation of military activities. In addition to the three-way talks with Ukraine, the US and Russia bilaterally agreed to revive their military dialogue, which was suspended in 2021.
Zelensky remains tough on the territorial issue
One issue in the Gulf may have been Moscow’s demand that the Ukrainian army withdraw from the parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions that it still controls. Moscow demands that the international community recognize that these territories belong to Russia.
Volodymyr Zelenskyj remains tough.Image: www.imago-images.de
“Even if someone recognizes our territories as Russian, it won’t help,” Zelenskyj commented in Kiev. Because not all states would do this, and no waiver would be valid without his signature as president. “That’s why our territories belong to us, even if they are temporarily occupied,” said Zelenskyj at a press conference with Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Kiev. Zelensky and Tusk agreed to strengthen their countries’ arms cooperation.
157 against 157: Moscow and Kyiv exchange prisoners
The only tangible result of the meeting in Abu Dhabi was the first prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine in several months. Each side released 157 captured soldiers home. Zelensky said soldiers from the Ukrainian army, the National Guard and the border troops had returned. Some have been in Russian captivity since 2022.
The exchange shows that “sustained diplomatic engagement delivers tangible results and advances efforts to end the war in Ukraine,” praised US representative Witkoff. However, the warring parties have now exchanged prisoners 71 times, almost always without US involvement.
The United Arab Emirates has mediated between Moscow and Kiev 18 times since the start of the war and facilitated the exchange of 5,000 prisoners, the Emirati Foreign Ministry told state agency WAM.
Ukraine claims to have shelled Russian missile test site
Zelenskyj took up a statement from his general staff that Ukraine had fired on the Kapustin Yar missile test site near Astrakhan in southern Russia with its self-developed Flamingo cruise missile. “Our flamingos have done their job,” said Zelensky and thanked the soldiers involved. There was no information on this from Moscow. From Kapustin Yar, the Russian army twice fired the destructive new Oreshnik medium-range missile into Ukraine.
Numerous houses in Kyiv are permanently without heating
More than 1,100 apartment blocks in Kiev will no longer be heated this winter due to the destruction of a thermal power plant. Mayor Vitali Klitschko announced this. The administration of the city of three million people published a list of 1,126 affected buildings, all of which are in the Darnytsia and Dniprovskyi districts on the eastern bank of the Dnipro.
Ukrainians seek shelter in a subway station during a nighttime Russian drone and missile attack. (02/03/2026)Image: www.imago-images.de
The thermal power plant for these parts of the city was so damaged in a Russian air strike on Tuesday that repairs will take at least two months, wrote Klitschko.
In the Ukrainian capital, people have had to survive without electricity, heating or water since heavy air strikes at the beginning of January. There is severe frost. The Ukrainian leadership accuses Russia of terrorizing people with cold and darkness. Ukraine has withstood a large-scale Russian invasion for almost four years. (sda/dpa)