Top US, Russian officials discuss ending Ukraine war
Top officials from the U.S. and Russia met in Saudia Arabia on Tuesday to discuss mending the relationship between the countries and negotiating an end to the war in Ukraine.
No Ukrainian officials were present at the meeting, The Associated Press reported.
The talks come after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his country wouldn’t agree to any pause in fighting if the country wasn’t involved in the peace talks.
President Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin spoke on the phone last week, a call intending to kick-start negotiations to end the nearly three-year war. Trump said it was a “lengthy and highly productive” call with Putin, but Zelensky was not happy that his allied country prioritized a call with Russia before Ukraine.
Russian officials said the U.S. will be its “main counterpart” in the peace talks, sidelining Ukraine, but admitting the country will be involved “one way or another.”
Tuesday’s meeting was attended by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and other senior officials, the AP reported.
Rubio reportedly said there would have to be concessions from all sides to end the war. He also said the European Union will "have to be at the table at some point," because both the allied countries and the U.S. have imposed sanctions on Russia because of its Ukraine invasion.
The meeting was expected to focus on U.S.-Russian relations and mend the relationship between Trump and Putin. The talks will also be a determining moment for both countries to assess how serious the other is about coming to a ceasefire for the war and improving international ties.
"President Trump wants to stop the killing; the United States wants peace and is using its strength in the world to bring countries together," State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a statement following the meeting. "President Trump is the only leader in the world who can get Ukraine and Russia to agree to that."
"One phone call followed by one meeting is not sufficient to establish enduring peace. We must take action, and today we took an important step forward," Bruce added later.
Rubio also said officials at the meeting agreed to restore embassy staffing and create a team to negotiate a ceasefire, per the AP.
Ukraine’s absence from the talks caused concern and an emergency meeting of European Union countries and the U.K. was called on Monday to discuss the ongoing war, the news wire also noted.
Zelensky called for the European Union to nominate an envoy to attend any peace talks, as the meeting between U.S. and Russian officials came as a surprise to many. He has also recently floated the need for a unified European army.
Trump has expressed that he intends to meet with Putin soon. Yuri Ushakov, Putin's foreign affairs adviser, indicated Tuesday that it is unlikely to take place this week or even next.
Updated at 8:55 a.m. EST.
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