Ongoing diplomatic shuttling by U.S. envoys has produced plans for technical trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi in early November 2026, yet no confirmed schedule exists for a leaders-level summit involving President Trump, President Putin, and President Zelenskyy before year-end. Putin has signaled openness to lower-level formats and proposed alternative trilateral discussions excluding Zelenskyy, while repeatedly resisting direct engagement with the Ukrainian leader on core issues such as territory and security guarantees. Zelenskyy has described a possible heads-of-state meeting as uncertain and dependent on Russian willingness, with remaining weeks offering limited windows before the 2027 threshold. These procedural and substantive hurdles underpin trader consensus that the three-way encounter remains improbable despite recent statements of progress.