US and Russian officials are scheduled to meet in Saudi Arabia next week to initiate talks aimed at resolving Russia's nearly three-year war in Ukraine, reports The Guardian.
The US delegation will include Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff. These discussions could set the stage for a leaders' summit by the end of the month, according to reports from Reuters and AFP.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that Ukraine was not invited to the talks, stressing that Kyiv would not engage in discussions with Russia without first consulting its strategic partners.
In a related development, US Secretary of State Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed the Ukraine conflict on Saturday, with both sides expressing a willingness to engage on international issues, including a potential settlement.
Moscow also noted that the two had agreed to maintain regular communication in preparation for a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump.
Trump’s former special envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, stated that while Europe would be consulted, it would ultimately be excluded from the discussions between Russia, the US, and Ukraine.
At the Munich Security Conference, Kellogg urged Europe to contribute more concrete proposals and ramp up defense spending.
Meanwhile, President Zelenskyy, speaking at the same conference, called for the creation of a European army, stating that Ukraine’s military alone was insufficient to face Russia.
He emphasized that Ukraine would not abandon its bid for NATO membership and insisted that no decisions about the end of the war should be made without input from Kyiv and Europe.
Bd-pratidin English/Tanvir Raihan
