Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov reported on Sunday that discussions between American and Ukrainian representatives in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, had been both "fruitful and concentrated," tackling crucial topics such as energy among others.
In a social media post on platform X, Umerov, who headed the Ukrainian delegation, highlighted that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s objective is to achieve “a fair and enduring peace” for both Ukraine and Europe as a whole, stating, “Our efforts aim to turn this vision into reality.”
According to the Ukrinform news agency, the Ukrainian delegation comprised State Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Oleksandr Karasevych, First Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration Pavlo Palisa, and his counterpart Ihor Zhovkva, along with Deputy Minister for Energy Mykola Kolisnyk.
Palisa verified on the same day that they would not be meeting with the Russian delegation in Riyadh.
During a video message on Sunday night, Zelenskyy stated that the discussions between U.S. and Ukrainian representatives earlier that day had been "highly fruitful." He further urged all involved parties to keep up the pressure on Russia with the aim of securing an actual ceasefire from their side.
The discussions occurred nearly two weeks following an earlier meeting between both parties in Jeddahl, a port city in Saudi Arabia. During this session, Kyiv consented to a one-month truce suggested by Washington, contingent upon the United States resuming its supply of military assistance and intelligence sharing with Ukraine.
Significantly, the discussion occurs before the negotiations between the American and Russian teams, set for Monday.
According to a Russian presidential aide, the Kremlin’s team comprises Grigory Karasin, who chairs the committee on international affairs in Russia's upper house, as well as Sergey Beseda, an advisor to the chief of Russia's Federal Security Service.
The discussions take place only a few days following Zelenskyy accusing his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, of obstructing cease-fire attempts while still behaving like an "aggressor." Even though both leaders concurred with the idea of implementing a restricted truce, Russia has continued its assault on Ukraine without stopping; instead, their attacks have become more intense.
On Friday, during an EU summit held in Brussels, there was renewed emphasis on strengthening Europe’s defenses. The leaders from the European Union concurred that all 27 member states should have full self-defense capabilities against potential aggression from Russia by the year 2030.
Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is heading the US delegation in Saudi Arabia. In discussions with American media, Witkoff expressed his skepticism about the concerns that Putin aimed to seize additional territories in Europe.
“I simply do not believe that his intention is to conquer all of Europe. The circumstances today are quite distinct from those during World War I and World War II, primarily because back then there wasn’t a NATO,” he stated.
I believe Putin based on what he says here. I feel like the Europeans are starting to adopt this view as well. However, it’s not really significant. It's more of a theoretical point.
He added that his sole focus is to implement "his boss" US President Donald Trump's agenda and bring an end to the conflict.
Trump said on Saturday that efforts to stop further escalation between Russia and Ukraine were “somewhat under control”. He also stated that he hopes the Riyadh talks offer a breakthrough to finally bring Russia's war, now in its fourth year, to a close.
