Russian and American officials meet today in Saudi Aarabia to start conversations about the end of the war in Ukraine – with Kiev absent in the discussions and insists that it will not accept a peace agreement without the input.
The meeting in Riyad is an important step of the Trump government to reverse the American policy for isolating Russia and is intended to free up the way for a meeting between President Donald Trump and the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.
Trump built up the American policy earlier this month by saying that he had made a phone call with Putin about starting negotiations, causing panic in Kiev to start and among European leaders.
Ukrainian officials do not participate in today's meeting, and President Volodyymyr Zensky said on Monday that his country will not accept the outcome of any discussions if KYIV has no room at the table.
'We cannot recognize things or similarities about us without us. And we will not recognize such similarities, “said Zensky, adding that it was earlier” it was like bad manners to talk to an aggressor during wartime. '
It is amid increasing fears in Europe that Trump will withdraw the US Security Umbrella over the continent and the Baltic States will remain at the mercy.
Sir Keir Starmer has called on the US to offer a 'backstop' for every deal in Ukraine, because European leaders desperately tried to set up a united front to support Kiev for contemporary conversations.
The American and Russian delegations are depicted when attending the bilateral meeting in the Diriyah Palace this morning.
The top officials present are the American State Secretary Marco Rubio, national security adviser Mike Waltz and special envoy Steve Witkoff with Putin's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and adviser to Foreign Affairs Yuri Ushakov on the Russian side.
The conversations mark a significant expansion of the American Russian contacts, almost three years in a war that has seen the ties fall to the lowest level in decades.
The American and Russian delegations are depicted when attending the bilateral meeting in the Diriyah Palace this morning
Putin's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov yesterday stated that Moscow has no plans to give territory that it has taken care of KYIV in Ukraine
The Ukrainian president hit in Europe and described it as a military 'weak' and unprepared to face Russian aggression
The recent American diplomatic Blitz about the war has sent KYIV and the most important allies to guarantee a chair at the table, in the midst of concern that Washington and Moscow can insist a deal that will not be favorable for them.
France called an emergency meeting of countries of the European Union and the UK on Monday to decide how to respond.
In anticipation of the conversations, Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, the Kremlin could join the meeting, the importance of the meeting in comments to the Associated Press.
'Good relationships between the US and Russia are very important for the whole world. Only jointly can Russia and the US tackle many world problems, solve for global conflicts and offer solutions, 'Dmitriev, who said that he and his team would concentrate on economic issues in the conversations, AP said.
The Saudi ownership satellite channel Al Arabiya, referring to the Russian delegation, described the priority of Moscow as 'real standardization with Washington'.
American officials have tried to give contemporary conversations as a follow -up to the call between Trump and Putin and a first contact between the two parties to determine whether Moscow is serious about ending the war.
Spokesperson Tammy Bruce of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Tammy Bruce told reporters: 'This is a follow-up of that first conversation between Putin and President Trump, perhaps if that first step is even possible, what the interests are, if this can be managed. '
However, the Kremlin suggested that the discussions would cover 'the entire complex of Russian-American relations', because apparently it tries to get the most out of his open communication with Washington.
Ukrainian President VolodyMyr Zenskyy depicted with Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan in Abu Dhabi-17 February 2025
Lavrov and the then State Secretary Antony shine spoke briefly two years ago about the sidelines of a G20 meeting in India, and in the autumn of 2022 the American and Russian spymasterers in Turkey met in the midst of Washington that Moscow could resort To nuclear weapons in the middle of battlefield setbacks.
Diriyah Palace is located across the diplomatic district of Riyadh.
It is also just besides the Ritz Carlton Hotel, which became known in 2017 after de facto leader crown prince Mohammed bin Salman had held other princes and the elite of the country there as part of what the Royal Court called a performance against corruption, who also aside stood, every potential challenge for taking control of the kingdom.
Organizing the conversations is an important step in the direction of a goal that Prince Mohammed has pursued during the war – placing the Kingdom in the middle of diplomatic negotiations.
It helped in negotiations about prisoners and Zelensky hosted an Arab League -top in the Kingdom in 2023. Zensky will travel to Saudi Arabia later this week.
For Prince Mohammed, once described as a 'pariah' by former US President Joe Biden about the murder of the Washington post-journalist Jamal Khashoggi 2018, who organizes such conversations, the other-worn image that the West has for him.
Prior to the top, the Saudi -daily newspaper Okaz described the moment as the 'World Eye on Riyadh'.
Journalist Mishari Al-Dhaidi wrote in London, but Saudi-Krant Asharq Al Awsat and described the top as' an important step about the international political chess sena, which revealed the status of Saudi Arabia and its positive influence for the purpose of The people all people '.
Organizing the Top also balances the harsh criticism that is recently levied by the tightly controlled media of the Kingdom in Trump about his repeated remarks that he wants the US to 'possess' the Gaza Strip, which has been destroyed by the Israeli military offensive there since The October 7, since October 7, 2023, Hamas Attack.
The Palestinians want Gaza and the West Bank for a future state, something that is supported by the wider Arab world and almost all international community.
