Kremlin says Vladimir Medinsky will lead Russia's delegation at talks with Ukraine and the US in Abu Dhabi on 10–11 November

Russia will send Vladimir Medinsky, an aide to President Vladimir Putin, to lead its delegation at trilateral talks with Ukraine and the United States in Abu Dhabi. This report draws on Interfax-Ukraine, NV (The New Voice of Ukraine) and the Guardian. ## The announcement Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday 3 November that Medinsky would lead the Russian team, Interfax-Ukraine reports, citing Russian media. Peskov said "my colleague Medinsky remains in that role", according to NV's English rendering. Peskov confirmed the 10–11 November dates previously given by the US special envoy, Steve Witkoff, Interfax-Ukraine and NV report; the Guardian says Witkoff announced on Monday that US-led talks would resume next week. ## Background Medinsky, a former Russian culture minister, has led several previous rounds of negotiations with Ukraine, the Guardian reports; it says his earlier appointment as chief negotiator was met with scepticism by Ukrainian officials and analysts, who questioned whether he had the authority to make meaningful concessions. President Volodymyr Zelensky has said Ukraine favours European participation in the talks but will not scuttle them if Washington insists on a strictly trilateral format, and has called territorial integrity a "red line", NV reports. The announcement came on the same day as a wave of Russian strikes on Ukraine's energy system, which is covered in a separate report.