Russian and Ukrainian negotiators report some progress in peace talks

Russian and Ukrainian negotiators said some progress was made in two days of peace talks in Abu Dhabi that ​ended on Wednesday.

They agreed to a large exchange of prisoners of war, but there was no major breakthrough on ending the conflict that began with Moscow’s full-scale invasion nearly five years ago.

Hopes had been low for any significant development in the first meeting in nine months between the delegations.

Russia and Ukraine have from time to time swapped POWs but have remained far apart in their demands for accepting a peace settlement.

United States envoy, Jared Kushner, described the talks as “very substantive” with “some pretty tough discussions” after the long pause.

“But obviously there's a lot of very serious issues that are being discussed, but the conversations were very thorough,” he said.

He said they covered all of the relevant issues and were able to “do a good exchange of ideas”.

“Some areas we see places where we can find compromises, others we need to have more discussions. But I think this was a good first step,” Kushner added.

Despite the positive note, US mediators say there is a lack of trust between the warring sides.

As well as postwar security guarantees for both countries, another key hurdle is the fate of Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory.

Kushner is due to meet with the presidents of both countries later this week.

In talks with Russia’s Vladimir Putin, he is expected to raise the question of including European partners in the talks.

Representatives of European governments, the European Union, and NATO were in the United Arab Emirates capital, but did not attend the three-way talks.

EU officials were excluded by Moscow from the discussions.

Moscow doesn’t want European countries, which are concerned about Russia’s conduct and broader intentions on the continent, involved in the direct negotiations.

These latest talks were held in a new political atmosphere as the Trump administration now has to reckon with Democrats taking control of the US Congress in January.

They could demand more support for Ukraine.

The negotiations also come against the backdrop of continued fighting on the frontline, where little territory has changed hands this year.

Analysts and humanitarian organisations say the ongoing conflict has resulted in the death of hundreds of thousands of soldiers and thousands of civilians.