US and Russian officials met on Tuesday in Riyadh for the highest-level talks to date between the two former Cold War foes on ending the war in Ukraine.
They were expected to discuss ways to end the three-year-old conflict in Ukraine and restore American-Russian relations.
Their talks could pave the way for a summit between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
Ukraine, which is not attending, says no peace deal can be made on its behalf. “We, as a sovereign country, simply will not be able to accept any agreements without us,” President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said last week.
Europe demands a role
European governments, alarmed at the possibility that Russia and the United States could sideline them from negotiations that will determine the future security of the continent, have also demanded a role in peace talks.
Media were allowed to film the two delegations before the start of the talks.
AFP
Putin’s foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov sat opposite US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, national security adviser Mike Waltz and Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff at a polished wooden table with three large white floral arrangements.
The officials ignored shouted questions from reporters asking whether the US was sidelining the Ukrainians and what concessions Washington was demanding of Moscow.
Russia said the talks would focus on ending the war and restoring “the whole complex” of Russia-US ties, which the Kremlin described as “below zero” under the previous administration of Joe Biden.
‘Problem solvers’
Kirill Dmitriev, the head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, told reporters in Riyadh: “We really see that President Trump and his team is a team of problem solvers, people who have already addressed a number of big challenges very swiftly, very efficiently and very successfully.”
Dmitriev, a US-educated former Goldman Sachs banker, played a role in early contacts with Moscow during Trump’s first term as president from 2016-2020.
Reuters
Ushakov said on Monday that Dmitriev might join the delegation to discuss economic questions.
“It’s very important to understand that US businesses lost around $300 billion from leaving Russia. So there is huge economic toll on many countries from, you know, what’s happening right now,” Dmitriev said.
US takes new approach to Russia under Trump
European leaders had gathered in Paris on Monday for an emergency summit to agree on a unified strategy, after being blindsided by Trump’s push for immediate talks on Ukraine after a phone call with Putin last week.
The European leaders said they would invest more in defence and take the lead in providing security guarantees for Ukraine.
“Everyone feels the great sense of urgency,” Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof said. “At this crucial time for the security of Europe we must continue to stand behind Ukraine.”
“Europe will have to make a contribution towards safeguarding any agreement, and cooperation with the Americans is essential.”
Follow-up
The meeting in Riyadh reflects a significant departure from Washington’s position under Biden, who eschewed public contacts, concluding that Russia was not serious about ending the war.
Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, having seized Crimea and fomented an insurgency in the east in 2014, and controls about a fifth of the country.
US officials cast Tuesday’s talks as an initial contact to determine whether Moscow is serious about ending the war, after Putin and Trump spoke last Wednesday.
Reuters
“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.
The Kremlin, however, suggested the discussions would cover “the entire complex of Russian-American relations”, as well as preparing for talks on a settlement for Ukraine and a meeting between the two presidents.
Russia said Lavrov and Rubio in a call on Saturday discussed removing barriers to trade and investment.
It’s all about influence
Then-president Biden and Kyiv’s allies around the world have imposed waves of sanctions on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine, aimed at weakening Russia’s economy and its war effort.
Riyadh, which is also involved in talks with Washington over the future of the Gaza Strip, has played a role in early contacts between the Trump administration and Moscow, helping secure a prisoner swap last week.
It remains unclear how Europe will engage Washington after Trump stunned Ukraine and European allies by calling Putin, long ostracised by the West.
“We agree with President Trump on a ‘peace through strength’ approach,” a European official said after the Paris meeting, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The US decision has sparked a realisation among European nations that they will have to do more to ensure Ukraine’s security.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who before the meeting said he was willing to send peacekeeping troops to Ukraine, said on Monday there must be a US security “backstop” for European countries to put boots on the ground.
Keith Kellogg, Trump’s Ukraine envoy, said he would visit Ukraine from Wednesday and was asked if the US would provide a security guarantee for any European peacekeepers.
“I’ve been with President Trump, and the policy has always been: You take no options off the table,” he said.
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