U.S.-Russia talks in Saudi Arabia
On Feb. 12, after a phone call with Russian dictator
Vladimir Putin, U.S. President Donald Trump said he
might meet with Putin in Saudi Arabia.
On Feb. 15, Bloomberg reported that senior U.S. and Russian
officials would soon meet in Saudi Arabia to prepare for a summit between Trump
and Putin to discuss ending the war in Ukraine.
According to CNN, the first round of U.S.-Russia talks on
the war in Ukraine is scheduled for Feb. 18, in Saudi Arabia. A day before, on
Feb. 17, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in Saudi Arabia for the
meeting with Russian representatives.
According to Politico, Rubio will be joined by U.S. National
Security Advisor Mike Waltz and U.S. Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff, who also
handles contacts with Russia.
Bloomberg and Politico reported that Keith Kellogg, Trump’s
special envoy for U.S.-Russia-Ukraine negotiations, would not attend the talks
in Saudi Arabia.
The Russian delegation will be led by Russian Foreign
Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin’s chief foreign policy advisor, Yury Ushakov.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced on Feb. 17 that both officials were
flying to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s capital, to meet with the U.S. delegation.
On Feb. 17, NBC News reported that the U.S. plans to hold
separate bilateral talks with Russia and Ukraine before arranging a joint
meeting.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that Ukraine
and European countries would be included in “real” negotiations later, but
he added that “we are not there yet” and that “it’s still a bit premature.”