Ukraine Peace Talks Face an Uphill Battle as Winter Approaches

After fading into the background when the war with Iran began, the US diplomatic push to end Russia's invasion of Ukraine is intensifying again, with the first US-Ukraine-Russia talks since February scheduled for November 10-11 in Abu Dhabi. On the eve of the talks, US President Donald Trump said on the CBS program 60 Minutes that he believes "we're very close to a deal" and that the war is "going to end soon."

Nevertheless, expectations of a breakthrough at the negotiations this week are low. Here are five reasons why. Means To An End One of the barriers to substantial progress could be summed up in a single word Russia.