US and Russia to Hold Talks on Ukraine War in Saudi Arabia

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will be meeting Russian officials in Saudi Arabia in the coming days to discuss ending the war in Ukraine. He will be joined by National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.

US Special Envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg confirmed that the US, Russia, and Ukraine would be involved in the talks, but European nations were not invited. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Kyiv had not received an invitation.

Concerned about being left out of the talks, Ukraine’s European allies will hold an emergency summit in Paris next week. Kellogg suggested that previous negotiations had failed due to too many parties being involved.

On Saturday, Rubio spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, assuring him that President Donald Trump is committed to ending the war. This followed a phone call between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, marking their first direct contact in three years. After the call, Trump said peace talks would start "immediately."

The discussions in Saudi Arabia come after tensions at the Munich Security Conference, where US Vice President JD Vance criticized European nations, urging them to take more responsibility for their own defense. Additionally, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also suggested that Ukraine might not join NATO or regain all its lost land, raising concerns that the US might be making concessions to Russia.

Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 after seizing Crimea and parts of eastern Ukraine in 2014. Speaking at the Munich conference, Zelensky called for the creation of a united "European army," warning that the US may not always be willing to support the continent.