First lady Melania Trump has called a Thursday meeting at the White House with representatives from Russia and Ukraine, ahead of planned peace talks in Abu Dhabi. (Foto: Instagram)
First lady Melania Trump has called a meeting with representatives of Russia and Ukraine for Thursday, Nov. 5, at the White House. The meeting is scheduled before peace negotiations in Abu Dhabi aimed at ending the war between the two countries.
In a statement, the White House said Trump independently opened a dialogue between the two nations and helped secure a one-week ceasefire in Oleshky and the surrounding area of Ukraine’s Kherson region. The statement described the achievement as an unprecedented diplomatic initiative by a U.S. first lady.
Dmitro Lubinets and Yana Lantratova, human rights officials representing Kyiv and Moscow, are expected at the meeting. They have met before, most recently during last week’s ceasefire in Oleshky. Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said Russian economic negotiator Kirill Dmitriev would also attend “if logistics allow,” according to local news agencies.
On Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky awarded Melania Trump a decoration in recognition of her “personal contribution to humanitarian aid.”
Russia and Ukraine are expected to resume peace talks in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, on Nov. 10 and 11, with U.S. mediation. The plan was announced this week by Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff. He said the discussions would address postwar security arrangements, de-escalation, humanitarian efforts and next steps toward peace.
Before those talks, U.S. negotiators are scheduled to meet later this week with representatives from France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the European Union and NATO.
