Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, President Donald Trump's envoys, briefed reporters in Abu Dhabi after two days of U.S.-mediated talks between Russia and Ukraine. It was the first trilateral round in about nine months, after talks stalled following February. Kushner said the goal goes beyond ending the war in Ukraine, and that he wants a path to avoid wars for the next century. Witkoff said the team feels real momentum, and Kushner called the talks a first good step.

The picture from the room is more mixed than the optimism suggests. Russia's chief negotiator, Vladimir Medinsky, said both sides found understanding on some issues but not others, and that more talks will follow. The one concrete result was an agreement on a large-scale prisoner swap. Kushner and Witkoff are now due to meet Putin in Moscow on Thursday and then Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Dublin. Kushner has called territory one of the hardest issues, so the big question is whether these talks can move from momentum to a real deal.