US, Russia hold first Ukraine war talks in Saudi Arabia
Shafaq News/ On Tuesday, senior US and Russian officials began talks in Saudi Arabia, marking the first high-level diplomatic engagement between the two countries since the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022.
The meeting, held at Diriyah Palace in Riyadh, was facilitated by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and aims to explore a potential ceasefire and broader US-Russia relations.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio led the American delegation, joined by National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff. Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov headed Moscow’s team, alongside Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov and sovereign wealth fund chief Kirill Dmitriev.
The talks follow a recent phone call between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, during which both leaders agreed to pursue negotiations on ending the conflict in Ukraine. Trump’s outreach took European allies by surprise, prompting an emergency summit in Paris a day earlier to agree on a unified strategy.
The European leaders committed to increasing defense spending and assumed a leading role in offering security guarantees to Ukraine. “Everyone feels the great sense of urgency,” Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof said on X. “At this crucial time for European security, we must continue to stand behind Ukraine.”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer suggested that peacekeepers might be needed in Ukraine but emphasized that any European deployment would require US security guarantees.
Ukraine was not invited to the Riyadh talks and reiterated that it would not engage directly with Russia without first consulting its allies.
US officials characterized the meeting as an exploratory step. “This is a follow-up on that initial conversation between Putin and President Trump about perhaps if that first step is even possible, what the interests are if this can be managed,” State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce told reporters in Riyadh.
Beyond the war, the delegations also discussed trade and investment restrictions, according to Al-Arabiya. Economic ties deteriorated following Western sanctions imposed after the Russia-Ukraine war, with Moscow seeking relief. “US businesses lost around $300 billion from leaving Russia,” Dmitriev said in Riyadh, calling Trump “a problem solver.”
Dmitriev, a former Goldman Sachs banker educated in the United States, played a role in early contacts between Moscow and Trump’s team during his first term. He suggested progress on economic cooperation could be expected within months, though details were not disclosed.
The talks signal a shift in Washington’s approach compared to the Biden administration, which avoided direct diplomacy with Moscow.
Keith Kellogg, Trump’s Ukraine envoy, said he would travel to Kyiv on Wednesday. “I’ve been with President Trump, and the policy has always been: You take no options off the table,” he noted when asked about security commitments for European forces.
Saudi Arabia, which previously facilitated a prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine, is also engaged in separate US talks regarding the future of Gaza.
The Russia-Ukraine war began in February 2022 after occupying Crimea and backing separatists in eastern Ukraine since 2014. The war has led to tens of thousands of deaths and displaced millions, while sanctions have battered the Russian economy and strained global markets.
