Russia has confirmed that another round of direct negotiations between Kyiv, Moscow and Washington will take place in Abu Dhabi this week, in an effort to end the war in Ukraine.
Initially planned for Sunday, the talks will continue on Wednesday, 4 January and Thursday, 5 January, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
On Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Kyiv was preparing for meetings this week to advance negotiations, after a meeting planned for Sunday in Abu Dhabi was postponed.
The previous two-day talks between Kyiv, Washington, and Moscow concluded in Abu Dhabi on 24 January and have not led to a breakthrough.
Ahead of the announcement, Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev met with US officials, including Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, in Miami on Sunday, 31 January.
The diplomatic efforts to end the conflict have scaled after an internal reshuffle in the Ukrainian delegation team, to include former Ukraine's intelligence chief Kyrilo Budanov as the head of the Presidential Office.
In the meantime, in recent months, Russia have scaled attacks on energy infrastructure in Ukraine, systematically leaving hundreds and thousands of people without electricity and heating supplies, as the temperature drops to -20°C.
Control over Ukraine's Donbas region remains the key milestone for negotiations, as Moscow demands that Ukraine cede the territory it still holds.
This region is particularly important for Ukraine's defence line and has proved difficult for Russian forces to capture.
As Russia throws tens of thousands of soldiers each month to push through, the war has become the deadliest conflict in Europe since Second World War.
