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Ukraine war briefing: post war ‘security guarantees’ a key focus in upcoming Abu Dhabi talks, says Rubio

Headline from The Guardian · compiled from 5 sources

Our analysis · checked against 18 sources

Rubio says security guarantees for Ukraine top agenda at Abu Dhabi talks Nov 10–11

US Secretary of State Rubio said postwar security guarantees for Ukraine and Europe are central to US-Ukraine-Russia talks in Abu Dhabi on November 10–11, after Brussels talks with NATO and Europe. No guarantee text is public, Rubio says the war must end first, and Moscow links guarantees to Ukraine ceding territory.

The framing"Key focus" does match Rubio's and Kushner's accounts of security talks in Brussels. But Rubio said the war must end before the guarantee stage, and FT sources expect the November 10–11 round to produce no ceasefire.

What the headline leaves out

  • Rubio said the war must end before the security-guarantee stage; FT sources expect no ceasefire from this round.
  • Russia expects more territory in return for guarantees (FT); Zelensky rules out leaving Donbas.
  • Zelensky says technical teams will focus on energy, sea and prisoner swaps.
  • The Kremlin rejects any NATO-country troop contingent in Ukraine.

What happens next

US, Ukrainian and Russian delegations meet in Abu Dhabi on November 10–11, 2026. FT sources consider a ceasefire unlikely, and Rubio says the war must end before guarantees are settled. A Responsible Statecraft analysis warns the window for a deal may not reopen soon if talks fail. Watch for any published guarantee text and for whether Putin attends the mid-December G20 in Florida, which Peskov has played down.

Possible knock-on effects
  • A reported 'agreement on guarantees' could be presented as progress while Russia's meaning excludes Western troops, which may leave the key dispute unresolved for Ukraine and Europe. (precedent: After August 2025 meetings, reports celebrated Putin's alleged agreement to guarantees that, for Russia, meant no NATO or European troops and a Russian veto.. Watch for: Whether any Abu Dhabi statement specifies foreign troop presence or assistance obligations.)
  • If guarantees lapse on any Ukrainian attack on Russia, as in the earlier US plan, a disputed incident could void them, weakening their value to Ukraine. (mechanism: Follows from the 28-point plan's condition that US guarantees lapse if Ukraine attacks Russia, even unintentionally.. Watch for: Whether any new text keeps or drops the lapse condition.)

Sources: Rubio says progress made on security infrastructure after Ukraine war (Korea Times/AFP), Kushner on Brussels talks, Rubio, Barrot and drone strike coverage, Zelensky reveals what to expect (Kyiv Independent), Zelensky on technical teams, Zelensky rules out territorial concessions (UPI), FT: Putin wants more territory (United24), Rubio called security guarantees main topic (UNN), Russian losses week (Kyiv Post), Russia lost 16,130 troops in a week (Euromaidan Press), Russia-Ukraine war report card, Nov 4, 2026, CSIS: Unfinished plan for peace in Ukraine, CSIS PDF: Unfinished Plan Ukraine, Irish Times on Istanbul 2022 draft, PILPG: Security guarantees as a buzzword, Responsible Statecraft: Ukraine peace security guarantees, Arab News: Rubio on postwar security framework, G20 Florida and Zelensky on US plans

Written in our own words from the sources above, and checked claim by claim before it was published. The report below says only what each outlet said.

The report: what outlets said

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Sunday that progress had been made on possible postwar security arrangements for Ukraine and Europe ahead of talks in Paris and Abu Dhabi[1]

According to The Guardian, Rubio's comments on Sunday, ahead of his travel to Paris for talks with G7 foreign ministers, come as Russia-Ukraine negotiations under US mediation have been set for Tuesday and Wednesday in Abu Dhabi.[2]Rubio told reporters, as quoted by Arab News: "The entirety of the time we've been talking about Russia-Ukraine, the one thing that's repeatedly come up is the need for security guarantees."[3] He added, according to the same outlet, that "there's been some advances made in what that architecture could look like post-conflict."[3]UNN, citing DRM News, quotes Rubio as saying: "These are certain initial proposals that are currently being considered. Nothing has been finally agreed upon yet."[4]The Guardian reports that US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who is also Trump's son-in-law, will represent the US in Abu Dhabi.[2] Arab News reports that Kushner said US officials held "productive and substantive discussions" with Ukraine, NATO and European partners in Brussels on Thursday.[5]According to The Guardian, "France will be in Abu Dhabi to take part in these discussions," Barrot told French radio station RTL.[2]The Guardian also reports that in an interview with CBS's "60 Minutes" broadcast on Sunday, Trump said he believed the war would end soon and suggested Ukraine could emerge from a settlement with altered borders.[2]Asked whether Russian president Vladimir Putin was stringing him along, Trump replied: "Oh, I don't think so."[2]

Listen to the songUkraine War — November 09, 2026

Sources

  1. [1]Rubio says progress made on 'security infrastructure' after Ukraine war - The Korea Times
  2. [2]Ukraine war briefing: post war ‘security guarantees’ a key focus in upcoming Abu Dhabi talks, says Rubio - AOL
  3. [3]Arab News | Rubio says progress made on postwar security framework for Ukraine, Europe - Europe
  4. [4]Rubio called security guarantees the main topic of the talks in Abu Dhabi | УНН
  5. [5]Arab News | Rubio says progress made on postwar security framework for Ukraine, Europe

Every sentence here reports what a named outlet said, with a link to it. Compiled by 93 from the reporting below.

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Ukraine war briefing: post war ‘security guarantees’ a key focus in upcoming Abu Dhabi talks, says Rubio | 93