US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll held meetings with Russian officials in Abu Dhabi on Monday about a proposed plan for ending the war in Ukraine, with talks to continue Tuesday, a US official told CNN.
The meetings, which follow days of intense diplomatic efforts as the US makes a fresh push for a resolution to the war, came as Russia and Ukraine conducted deadly strikes on each other overnight Tuesday, with at least six killed in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv, and three dead in Russia’s Rostov region.
The talks with Russia, held after US-Ukraine talks in Geneva over the weekend, are meant to lay the groundwork for higher-level engagements in the future, the official said, adding that the Russian delegation is attending with President Vladimir Putin’s approval.
Driscoll is the most senior member of the American delegation in Abu Dhabi excluding any diplomats, the official said. The makeup of Russia’s delegation was not immediately clear. The discussions will continue Tuesday, the official said.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Monday that President Donald Trump is “hopeful and optimistic that a deal can be struck” to end Russia’s war with Ukraine, following the negotiations in Geneva over a 28-point peace proposal which the US authored with Russian and Ukrainian input.
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