“It’s still a bridge we have to cross. It’s still a gap —
but at least we’ve narrowed the list of issues down to one, central one. And
it’s probably going to be very difficult,” Rubio said.
He added that the United States has approved a draft
framework for providing security guarantees to Ukraine.
“And of course, any security guarantees will only take
effect once the conflict ends,” he said.
Reuters noted that U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and presidential
adviser Jared Kushner are not expected to attend the next round of negotiations
in Abu Dhabi, tentatively scheduled for Feb. 1. However, Washington may still
be represented in some other form.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly
emphasized that Kyiv’s position on territorial issues remains unchanged:
Ukraine will not agree to hand over Donetsk or Luhansk oblasts to Russia.
Moscow, meanwhile, continues to insist on the so-called
Anchorage formula — a proposal that would see Ukrainian forces withdraw from
Donbas and freeze the current front lines.
Trilateral negotiations in UAE — where things stand
Ukraine, the U.S., and Russia held a round of trilateral
peace talks in Abu Dhabi on Dec. 23 and 24. Zelenskyy later described the
meetings as constructive, saying they focused on outlining potential parameters
for ending the war.
U.S. officials told reporters the talks had “exceeded
expectations,” calling the atmosphere “very optimistic, positive, and
constructive.” While no decisions were made on territorial issues, some
progress was reportedly achieved in the military-related discussions.
On Jan. 26, Zelenskyy confirmed that a new round of
trilateral negotiations is expected on Feb. 1.