Ukraine and the United States will meet in Riyadh after Russian-American talks
Kyiv • UNN
A meeting between Ukrainian and American delegations is planned in Saudi Arabia following Russian-American negotiations on a ceasefire. A positive statement is expected in the near future.
A meeting between Ukrainian and American delegations is scheduled to take place in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, following Russian-American talks there the day before on a "limited ceasefire proposal in the Black Sea," which Washington hopes will pave the way for broader peace talks, Reuters reports, writes UNN.
Details
The day-long talks in Saudi Arabia on Monday between Russian and US officials were presented by Washington as a step in President Donald Trump's efforts to end the three-year war.
A White House source said that progress had been made in the talks in Riyadh, and a "positive statement" is expected "in the near future."
A Russian source told Reuters that the talks in Riyadh ended late on Monday, and a draft joint statement was sent to Moscow and Washington for approval, and the parties intend to publish it on Tuesday.
Earlier, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, according to Russian media, said earlier that no documents would be signed.
CBS News reported that the US and Russia are expected to release a joint statement on their talks in Riyadh on Tuesday morning. Two sources of the publication reported that the statement will be published at 4 am in Washington (10:00 Kyiv time).
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his evening video address on Monday that Ukrainian officials in Riyadh would meet with the US team after the Russian-American talks. The National Television and Radio Company "Suspilne", citing a source in the Ukrainian delegation, reported that the negotiations will take place on Tuesday.
Addition
As the publication notes, last week Russia rejected Trump's proposal for a full 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine, and has so far only agreed to a moratorium on attacking energy infrastructure.
On Monday, Trump listed the issues that he said were on the table: "We are now talking about territory. We are talking about demarcation lines, we are talking about electricity, ownership of power plants."
Monday's talks in Saudi Arabia followed phone calls last week between Trump and Zelenskyy and Putin, and after a meeting between Ukrainian officials and Americans in Saudi Arabia on Sunday.
Trump, who, the publication writes, "has reduced US diplomatic support for Ukraine and has publicly moved to a position much less critical of Russia than that of his predecessor Joe Biden," says he wants to end the war quickly.
The White House claims that the initial goal of the Saudi talks is to secure a ceasefire at sea in the Black Sea, allowing the free flow of ships.
Trump expressed broad satisfaction with how the talks are going and spoke approvingly of Putin's participation.
But major European powers doubt whether Putin is ready to make real concessions or will stick to what they consider his maximalist demands, which do not appear to have changed since he sent troops into Ukraine in 2022.
White House National Security Advisor Mike Waltz told CBS's "Face the Nation" on Sunday that delegations from the United States, Russia and Ukraine gathered in the same room in Riyadh.
In addition to a ceasefire in the Black Sea, Waltz said, the teams will discuss the "line of control" between the two armies, which he called "verification measures, peacekeeping, freezing lines where they are".
