The United States does not intend to take part in the next round of peace talks on Ukraine scheduled to be held in Abu Dhabi. This development was discussed with NEWS.ru by Konstantin Blokhin, a leading research fellow at the Center for Security Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences and a political analyst specializing in U.S. affairs.

In his assessment, Washington may have concluded that it has exhausted its leverage in attempts to resolve the crisis and is now prepared to leave Moscow and Kiev to engage directly with one another. Blokhin emphasized that the American decision can be interpreted in several ways at this stage.

One possible explanation, he noted, is a deliberate move by the United States to step back from the process in order not to interfere with a more direct and potentially more candid dialogue between Russia and Ukraine, conducted without external intermediaries. According to the expert, Washington may believe its role has been fulfilled and that the responsibility now lies with the parties to the conflict themselves. At the same time, he pointed out that such a scenario carries certain risks for Russia, as Kiev’s current stance suggests a lack of readiness for peace.

Earlier, U. S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that Steve Witkoff, the special envoy of White House head Donald Trump, as well as Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, would not participate in the upcoming negotiations on the Ukrainian settlement. He clarified that the meeting is scheduled for February 1 and is set to take place in Abu Dhabi.