U.S.-Russia Peace Talks Raise Concerns as Ukraine Is Left Out

Recent peace talks between the U.S. and Russia in Saudi Arabia have sparked controversy, especially after Ukraine was left out of the discussions.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump added to the tension by blaming Ukraine for the war, suggesting it could have been avoided if Ukraine had made a deal earlier. He claimed he could have negotiated peace, letting Ukraine to keep most of its land while preventing war. His comments have been widely criticized, since Russia started the invasion nearly three years ago.

Meanwhile, high-ranking officials from the U.S. and Russia met in Riyadh for the first time since the war began. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio agreed to form teams to work on a peace deal. However, Lavrov insisted that Russia would not accept NATO troops in Ukraine and repeated that Ukraine joining NATO would be a threat to Russia.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky was frustrated by his country was left out from the talks. Speaking at a press conference in Turkey, he said that decisions about Ukraine should not be made without Ukraine. U.S. officials insisted Ukraine was not being ignored, but many fear Kyiv is losing control over its future.

The talks also worried European leaders, who met in Paris but disagreed on how to respond. U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Britain might send troops to Ukraine, while Germany, Poland, and Italy opposed military action, saying military action would not be effective.

As negotiations move forward, it remains unclear how much say Ukraine will have in the final deal. For now, the U.S. and Russia are leading discussions, while Ukraine anxiously watches from the sidelines.