Kremlin Names Medinsky Lead Negotiator for Abu Dhabi Talks as White House Sets Melania Trump's Oleshky Event for Nov. 5

Since Steve Witkoff announced late Monday that the U.S. would mediate Ukraine-Russia talks in Abu Dhabi on Nov. 10-11, Moscow has confirmed it will attend. The Kremlin has also added a few moving parts of its own.

Moscow names its negotiator

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Tuesday, Nov. 3, that Putin aide Vladimir Medinsky will be Russia's chief negotiator in Abu Dhabi. Witkoff has said the talks will focus on security arrangements, de-escalation and humanitarian issues.

Peskov also said the Kremlin hopes to finalize plans "in the coming days" for a trilateral meeting of Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump and Xi Jinping. Earlier reports said the three countries were discussing ending the war without Ukraine at the table.

Zelenskyy rejected that format on Oct. 20. "It can be acceptable only when we are at the table of negotiations," he said. "Nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine."

Before Abu Dhabi, Witkoff said U.S. negotiators will meet European and NATO officials in Brussels this week to discuss post-war security guarantees and Ukraine's reconstruction. Witkoff and Jared Kushner are expected to lead the U.S. delegation.

Britain and France said about 2,800 troops from 10 European countries will take part in an exercise in Poland from Nov. 9 to 22. It will test deployment of the Multinational Force-Ukraine, which is meant to support Ukraine after a ceasefire and has no offensive mission.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said he does not know "if negotiated peace is achievable."

The Oleshky ceasefire and a White House event

The White House said Tuesday that First Lady Melania Trump will bring Russian and Ukrainian representatives to the White House on Thursday, Nov. 5. She will deliver remarks on the Oleshky ceasefire at 11 a.m. ET. The White House called it "an extraordinary moment in American history" and said she "independently initiated engagement between the two warring nations and successfully secured a ceasefire in Oleshky and the surrounding Kherson region."

The truce ran from 3 a.m. on Oct. 27 until 11 p.m. local time on Nov. 1. It let civilians leave the Russian-occupied city, which had been effectively blockaded, with severe shortages of food, water, electricity and medicine. Melania Trump said "nearly 800 people" were evacuated. Neither Kyiv nor Moscow has publicly confirmed that figure or where those people went.

The White House has not named the attendees. A Ukrainian official told the Kyiv Independent that Ukrainian ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets and Russian human rights commissioner Yana Lantratova are expected. Lantratova has been under U.S. sanctions since 2022 and would need a State Department waiver to enter the country. Lubinets' spokesperson declined to comment, and neither government has commented publicly.

Who brokered the truce is also in question. Le Monde, citing its own sources, reported that the operation was negotiated over four months by Russian military intelligence (GRU) and Ukraine's HUR. Those sources said both sides agreed to credit the first lady to placate President Trump as he seeks a diplomatic breakthrough. The White House statement credits her directly.

Ukraine's military said Russian forces used the truce to rotate troops, strengthen defenses and improve logistics. Peskov answered that adjusting positions during a ceasefire is standard practice and suggested Ukraine did the same. The Kremlin has publicly ruled out further such humanitarian operations for the foreseeable future.

Strikes continue on both sides

The fighting did not pause for diplomacy. Ukrainian officials said Russia hit energy facilities in 10 regions Tuesday with 17 ballistic missiles and nearly 300 drones. Prime Minister Serhiy Koretskyi said large power plants in the Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk and Vinnytsia regions were struck.

DTEK, Ukraine's largest private power generator, said three of its thermal plants stopped generating and described "extensive" damage. Ukraine's state electricity transmitter reported emergency shutdowns in at least six regions and outages in five, including Odesa. Russia's Defense Ministry acknowledged the strikes, saying it hit thermal plants in Dnipropetrovsk, Vinnytsia and Kharkiv plus two electrical substations.

Zelenskyy said a Russian strike on a Kharkiv hospital injured 73 people and damaged its cardiology department. Mayor Ihor Terekhov said more than 1,000 windows in the hospital and nearby buildings were broken.

The night before, a Russian strike on a former school used as an aid distribution point in Zaporizhzhia killed at least 26 people, according to Zelenskyy and emergency services. Other officials put the toll at 33, with more than 40 people missing.

Ukraine hit back at Russian territory. Yaroslavl Governor Mikhail Yevrayev said about 124 drones attacked an oil refinery on the outskirts of the regional capital, injuring two workers and starting a fire.

What comes next

The next fixed points are Thursday's 11 a.m. ET event, where the guest list and the Lantratova waiver are unresolved, and the Abu Dhabi talks on Nov. 10-11. Whether the Putin-Trump-Xi meeting Peskov wants is actually scheduled, and on what terms for Kyiv, is still open.