War in Ukraine
Ukraine negotiations on the second day also on territorial issues
Updated on January 24, 2026 – 12:27 p.mReading time: 1 min.
The second day of talks about ending the war in Ukraine has begun in Abu Dhabi. It also concerns the key issue of territorial taxes. Is a solution possible?
According to media information, the negotiations to end the Russian war in Ukraine also began on the second day with discussions on the sensitive issue of territorial cessions. According to the state news agency Tass, Russian delegation circles said that several documents were being studied and discussed. “Both territories and (security) guarantees and other aspects,” the agency quoted its informant as saying.
The issue of territorial cessions is one of the most sensitive in peace talks. In addition to the already occupied areas in the east of Ukraine, Russia is demanding additional areas of land, specifically the remains of the Donetsk region, which have not yet been conquered after almost four years. Ukraine, in turn, rejects a unilateral withdrawal from the region.
Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine in February 2012 on the grounds that his own national security was threatened by his neighbor’s planned accession to NATO. An occupation of Ukrainian territories was not planned, he said at the start of the war.
At the negotiations in Abu Dhabi, where Russian and Ukrainian negotiators are now talking directly to each other again after a long break, Moscow is insisting on Kiev’s renunciation of NATO membership and on larger areas of the neighboring country. If there is no diplomatic solution, Russia will achieve its goal through military means, according to Moscow.
