Ukraine president welcomes a change in message from US mediators ahead of day two of trilateral talks with Russia and US in Abu Dhabi
US officials seek ‘final end’ to Russia-Ukraine war, as Abu Dhabi talks set to continue
… and just like that, the second day of the Abu Dhabi talks has just got under way, according to top representatives from Russia and Ukraine .
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he was “happy” with US mediators’ “changes” in approach during the first day of the trilateral talks with Russia on ending the invasion of Ukraine.
Speaking in Copenhagen last night, Zelenskyy praised the talks as “constructive and quite substantive,” hoping for more progress to be made today.
But he also hit out at Russia’s assessment of its battlefield strengths, saying Vladimir Putin lives in a “different reality” . In a post on social media, Zelenskyy said Russia has claimed at the talks that they occupied half of the Donbas in Ukraine’s east.
“This is the problem. Putin lives in a different reality,” the Ukrainian president wrote, adding: “I can draw a picture for him too where I fully occupy Russia . But it’s not true. What was good is that the American side confirmed the Ukrainian assessment of what is happening on the battlefield.”
We will hear from him later as he is expected to address the Danish parliament late morning.
US envoys Jared Kushner and businessman Steve Witkoff are mediating the negotiations. Kushner told delegates the US had “narrowed the gaps” between the warring sides, without providing details, and hoped to move towards a “solution” to Europe’s worst conflict since the second world war.
Elsewhere, I will bring you the latest from Bulgaria as it marks a national day of mourning after a deadly motorway accident which killed 11 and left over 50 injured, from Latvia and Lithuania after a tricky night with several air threat alerts in both countries, from Portugal as the country braces for the impact of storm Charles, from Spain where a general strike gets under way, and from Poland with its independence day celebrations.
It’s Wednesday, 11 November 2026 , it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live .
