# G7 ministers meet in Paris as US, Russian and Ukrainian delegations prepare for talks in Abu Dhabi

Trump told 60 Minutes that Ukraine will "end up with a little bit different shape" after the war, and Finland's and Norway's leaders spent months preparing their own call with Vladimir Putin, according to Politico.

- Published: 2026-11-09T05:08:23.120Z
- Canonical: https://polylog.news/2026-11-09/g7-ministers-meet-in-paris-as-us-russian-and-ukrainian-deleg
- Publisher: Polylog (Global desk)
- Section: geopolitics
- Sources: [Deutsche Welle](https://www.dw.com/en/g7-ministers-meet-as-europe-seeks-greater-say-in-ukraine-peace-talks/a-79894960), [Kyiv Independent](https://kyivindependent.com/ukraine-will-likely-end-up-with-a-little-bit-different-shape-after-war-trump-tells-60-minutes/), [RIA Novosti](https://ria.ru/20261109/razgovor-2130208561.html), [TASS](https://tass.com/economy/2214575)

Foreign ministers of the Group of Seven meet in Paris on November 9 and 10 under France's presidency. France has also invited [Brazil, Egypt, South Korea, Saudi Arabia and Ukraine](https://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/en/presse-et-ressources/decouvrir-et-informer/actualites/quelles-priorites-pour-la-reunion-des-ministres-des-affaires-etrangeres-du-g7-a-paris). Deutsche Welle reported that European governments want [a greater say in Ukraine peace talks and fear Kyiv could be pressed to accept a bad deal](https://www.dw.com/en/g7-ministers-meet-as-europe-seeks-greater-say-in-ukraine-peace-talks/a-79894960). Iran and the threat of renewed US strikes are also on the agenda.

The negotiations that matter take place elsewhere. US, Russian and Ukrainian delegations are due in Abu Dhabi on November 10 and 11. Jared Kushner and envoy Steve Witkoff will lead the American side, and talks will cover [post-war security arrangements, de-escalation and next steps](https://www.axios.com/2026/11/03/us-russia-ukraine-peace-talks-uae-trump-witkoff-kushner), Axios reported. Trump told 60 Minutes that Ukraine will likely ["end up with a little bit different shape"](https://kyivindependent.com/ukraine-will-likely-end-up-with-a-little-bit-different-shape-after-war-trump-tells-60-minutes/) and that the war will end soon "because of me."

Some European governments are opening their own channels. Russian state agency RIA Novosti, citing Western media, reported that Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre [spent months studying the possibility of a conversation with Putin](https://ria.ru/20261109/razgovor-2130208561.html). The call took place on October 27. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Putin [opened by setting out his view of the conflict's root causes](https://news.rambler.ru/politics/57327024-ushakov-raskryl-detali-razgovora-putina-so-stubbom-i-stere/). Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen criticized the call as [uncoordinated with any EU country](https://iz.ru/2194243/2026-10-31/stubb-nazval-prichiny-vazhnosti-telefonnogo-razgovora-s-putinym).

Kyiv's dependence on outside financing frames its bargaining position. TASS reported that Ukraine [paid almost $500 million to creditors in October, including $252.8 million to the International Monetary Fund](https://tass.com/economy/2214575).

## What this means

The settlement runs through a US-Russia channel in a Gulf capital. Europe's influence comes from money, not from a role in the talks: it funds Kyiv's debt service and holds frozen Russian assets. European governments are not acting as one bloc. Finland and Norway called Putin on their own, Denmark objected, and France invited Global South states to a G7 meeting. This adds to the evidence that NATO cohesion is weakening and that Paris is pursuing its own diplomatic track separate from Washington's. Trump's "different shape" remark is the clearest sign yet that Washington will accept territorial change. Ukrainian sovereign debt, European defense budgets and European gas prices are the most exposed. The likelier outcome within weeks is a framework on security arrangements and ceasefire sequencing agreed in Abu Dhabi without European signatures, followed by requests that Europe fund guarantees and reconstruction. The read fails if Moscow withdraws from the talks after Ukraine's strikes on its refineries, or if Washington makes European consent a condition of the framework.

## What to watch

- Whether the Abu Dhabi talks produce a written framework or only a statement. A text on security arrangements would show that the three-way channel is replacing European-led formats.
- The G7 communiqué's language on frozen Russian assets. A decision to commit them to Ukraine would show that Europe is using money to buy influence over the terms.
- Further direct calls between individual European leaders and Putin. More of them would confirm that European governments are pursuing separate national channels.