Talks between Ukraine, Russia and the United States on efforts to end to the war in Ukraine are underway in Abu Dhabi after a nine month pause.

Nov. 10 (UPI) -- Trilateral talks between Ukraine, Russia and the United States on efforts to bring an end to the war in Ukraine resumed Tuesday in Abu Dhabi after being paused since February.

"A little bit of flexibility" on the main sticking point of future control of Ukraine's eastern regions was being demonstrated by both sides, according to U.S. officials.

While Moscow's official position is that it wants parts of Donetsk still held by Ukraine and Kyiv's is that it wants to retain them as a security buffer, freezing the current status quo, a U.S. official told the BBC that privately, Moscow and Kyiv were showing some willingness to compromise but that progress depended on security arrangements for after the fighting stopped.

"They will not solve the Donetsk issue and the territorial issue until they know what the security architecture is going to be after the war. And keep in mind, we're not going to be able to finalize one without the other," said the official.

U.S. negotiator Jared Kushner, who is representing the United States along with U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, said in a lengthy post on X on Monday that the aim was to build on separate consultations with the sides to directly discuss "their postwar security concerns, proposals and solutions."

"We hope these discussions will identify areas of common ground, advance practical solutions, and build momentum toward the next phase of negotiations," wrote Kushner, adding that serious thought by the sides about what came "after the war" was an important part of the process, including economic recovery, preventing it happening again and ensuring a lasting peace.

Ahead of the two days of talks, Kushner and Witkoff met Tuesday morning with representatives from Britain, France, Germany, Italy, NATO and the European Commission, according to Ukrainian foreign intelligence chief Rustem Umerov.

Kushner said the meeting with the Europeans was part of the Trump administration's commitment to the security of the continent that aimed to find "a negotiated solution that can deliver lasting peace and create the conditions for a sovereign, secure, and prosperous Ukraine within a more stable European security environment."