In his press conference, Russian President Vladimir Putin indicated that the primary players in the upcoming talks on Ukraine would be Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Presidential aide Yuri Ushakov, and Vladimir Medinsky from the Presidential Executive Office. He also confirmed that there had recently been discussions between the Ukrainians and the Russian side in Abu Dhabi. “Our secret services, Russian and Ukrainian, have always been in contact with each other, even in the hardest time,” Putin said. He said that they were primarily dealing with humanitarian issues, i.e., the exchange of prisoners.