US and Russia agree to resume high-level military-to-military communication

The United States and Russia have agreed to restore high-level military-to-military communication that was suspended in the fall of 2021 ahead of Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine, the US military’s European Command announced Thursday.

The agreement was reached while the head of the United States European Command, General Alexus G. Grynkewich, was in Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates. He was participating in trilateral talks between the United States, Russia and Ukraine aimed at ending a nearly four-year war.

“Maintaining military-to-military dialogue is an important factor for global stability and peace, which can only be achieved through force, and provides a means for greater transparency and a reduction in tensions,” European Command said in a statement.

The resumption of dialogue between the military coincided with the expiration of the last remaining treaty regulating nuclear weapons between the United States and Russia, the world’s largest nuclear powers.

The announcement came after the second round of direct talks between Russia and Ukraine, mediated by the United States.

The two-day talks were attended by U.S. Special Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff and President Trump’s son-in-law and advisor Jared Kushner, as well as Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and Grynkewich.

In a statement Thursday, Witkoff announced the first prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Russia in five months. He called the negotiations “detailed and productive,” adding that “while significant work remains, steps like this demonstrate that sustained diplomatic engagement is yielding tangible results and advancing efforts to end the war in Ukraine.”

Since the beginning of his second term, Trump has pushed to end the war in Ukraine, which will enter its fourth year on February 24. But negotiations have hit roadblocks, largely over occupied Ukrainian territory that Russia wants to retain as part of any peace deal.

The death toll continues to rise. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this week that an estimated 55,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed in the fighting. The Center for Strategic and International Studies estimated in a report last month that up to 325,000 Russian forces have been killed since 2022.