US-Russia Talks Begin in Saudi Arabia

Negotiations between the US delegation and representatives of the Russian aggressor country have begun in the Saudi capital, Riyadh. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met before the talks on ending the war in Ukraine, Ukrinform reports citing CNN.

Other US officials present at the talks in Riyadh include US National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and US Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff.

On the Russian side, the meeting was attended by Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin's aide Yuri Ushakov and the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, Kirill Dmitriev, who played a key behind-the-scenes role in the recent deal to release prisoners in the United States.

Lavrov said the talks would aim to end an ‘abnormal period’ in relations between the two ‘great powers’.

The discussion could also lay the groundwork for a potential meeting between US President Donald Trump and Putin, the article says.

At the same time, the Associated Press reports that at the beginning of the meeting, Rubio, Lavrov and others were joined by Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan al-Saud and National Security Adviser Musayed al-Ayban, but are expected to leave at the beginning of the talks.

The day before, on Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, commenting on the upcoming talks between the Russian and American sides in Saudi Arabia, stressed that Ukraine would not participate in them and would not recognise the results.

In turn, US Special Representative for Ukraine and Russia Keith Kellogg said that the participation of European countries in negotiations to end the Russian-Ukrainian war would be crucial.

Earlier, German Foreign Ministry spokesperson Sebastian Fischer said that no negotiations to restore peace in Ukraine are possible without the active participation of Europeans, as they have important tools to influence Russia.