Tamara Keith

Right.

And when you see the president ever so slightly trying to distance himself from the actions of his own administration, you know where the politics are.

All right.

We're going to leave it there for today.

Thanks for being here again, Clay.

And if you don't want to miss any of our political analysis, please make sure to hit that follow button in your favorite podcast app.

I'm Tamara Keith.

I cover the White House.

And thank you for listening to the NPR Politics Podcast.

The U.S.

team spoke to reporters after two days of meetings in Abu Dhabi with high-level delegations from Ukraine and Russia.

The officials said, quote, just getting them to the table to talk is a big step and, quote, the conversations were very respectful.

Even if there were no significant breakthroughs, they said having everyone in the same room was progress after months of at times frustrating shuttle diplomacy.

Major sticking points remain, including how territory will be divided up and the terms of de-escalation if there is a deal.

The officials say the next meeting has already been set for a week from now, again in Abu Dhabi.

Tamara Keith, NPR News.

You're listening to NPR News from Washington.

The U.S.

team spoke to reporters after two days of meetings in Abu Dhabi with high-level delegations from Ukraine and Russia.

The officials said, quote, just getting them to the table to talk is a big step.