'Diplomatic dancing with tambourines': Ukrainian official dismisses Abu Dhabi talks

Volodymyr Ohryzko, diplomat and head of the Center for Russian Studies, stated this on Espreso TV.

"There is no doubt that the main goal of the Russians is to simulate negotiations, making progress on some secondary or tertiary points in order to explain to Trump that we are on your side, that we are talking, that we are trying to find common ground, but due to Ukraine's poor position we cannot do anything, so pressure must be put on Ukraine and demand its actual capitulation," Ohryzko noted.

The diplomat predicted that at the negotiations with Russia in Abu Dhabi, the military representatives may have made progress on technical matters, for example: what the line of contact might look like, what means of monitoring the ceasefire should be in place, who will provide them, who the participants in this process are, and where they will be deployed.

"These are technical matters that are undoubtedly important, but they are only important when the fundamental political question has been resolved. And Moscow has no intention of resolving it, so I would call all of this diplomatic dancing with tambourines. Because we cannot yet speak of any results," Ohryzko emphasized.

• The trilateral discussions in the UAE took place on January 23 and 24, 2026.