Russia, US to name negotiators on ending Ukraine war
Published: 05:02 PM,Feb 18,2025 | EDITED : 09:02 PM,Feb 18,2025
US, Russia delegates attend a meeting with Saudi Arabia's officials, at Riyadh's Diriyah Palace. — AFP
RIYADH: Washington said Russia and the United States will name teams to negotiate a path to ending the war in Ukraine as soon as possible, as the superpowers met on Tuesday in Saudi Arabia without Kyiv or the EU. However, no specifics on a possible meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin emerged from the gathering in Riyadh, the first high-level official Washington-Moscow talks since Ukraine's 2022 attack. Some European leaders, alarmed by Trump's overhaul of US policy on Russia, fear Washington will make serious concessions to Moscow and re-write the continent's security arrangement in a Cold War-style deal between superpowers.
On Tuesday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov agreed to 'appoint respective high-level teams to begin working on a path to ending the conflict in Ukraine as soon as possible', the State Department said. Washington added the sides had also agreed to 'establish a consultation mechanism' to address 'irritants' to Russia and America's relationship, noting the sides would lay the groundwork for future cooperation.
Russia offered less detail on the outcome of the talks, saying: 'We discussed and outlined our principled positions, and agreed that separate teams of negotiators will be in touch on this topic in due course.' 'It is still difficult to talk about a specific date for a meeting between the two leaders,' said Yuri Ushakov, Putin's foreign policy aide. Russia sketched out some of its perspectives on future talks to ending the fighting in Ukraine, arguing that settling the war required a reorganisation of Europe's defence agreements.
European leaders held an emergency meeting in Paris a day earlier, but struggled to put on a united front. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in Turkiye on Tuesday, said on the eve of the talks that he was not invited and would not 'recognise any things or any agreements about us without us'. Isolated by the West for three years, Russia is hoping for a 'restoration' of ties with the United States and a comeback to the international arena. Both Russia and the United States have cast Tuesday's meeting as the beginning of a potentially lengthy process and downplayed the prospects of a breakthrough. Russia's Ushakov told state media the talks would discuss 'how to start negotiations on Ukraine'.
Trump has said he wants to end the war in Ukraine, but has thus far presented no concrete plan. The United States has urged both sides that concessions will have to be made if any peace talks materialise. Russia on the eve of the summit said there cannot be even a 'thought' on it giving up territory seized from Ukraine.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington was aiming for a 'fair' and 'sustainable' solution to the Ukraine war, after a meeting with his Russian counterpart in Riyadh. In remarks to reporters after the Saudi-hosted meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Rubio said that 'the goal is to bring an end to this conflict in a way that's fair, enduring, sustainable and acceptable to all parties involved'. Rubio said that European nations would have to be involved in talks on ending the war, and that 'extraordinary opportunities existed to partner' with Russia. 'The key to unlock that is the end to this conflict,' he said. Rubio and Lavrov agreed to 'lay the groundwork for future cooperation on matters of mutual geopolitical interest and historic economic and investment opportunities which will emerge from a successful end to the conflict in Ukraine', the spokeswoman said. Rubio said he was 'convinced' that Moscow was willing to engage in a 'serious process' to end the war.
The Kremlin said on Tuesday that Ukraine had the 'right' to join the European Union, but not the Nato military alliance. It also said Putin was 'ready' to negotiate with Zelensky 'if necessary', though repeated its questioning of his 'legitimacy' -- a reference to his five-year term expiring last year, despite Ukrainian law not requiring elections during wartime. The Ukrainian leader was in Turkey on Tuesday for discussions on the conflict with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. He is due in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, though he said he does not plan to meet with US or Russian officials. — AFP
On Tuesday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov agreed to 'appoint respective high-level teams to begin working on a path to ending the conflict in Ukraine as soon as possible', the State Department said. Washington added the sides had also agreed to 'establish a consultation mechanism' to address 'irritants' to Russia and America's relationship, noting the sides would lay the groundwork for future cooperation.
Russia offered less detail on the outcome of the talks, saying: 'We discussed and outlined our principled positions, and agreed that separate teams of negotiators will be in touch on this topic in due course.' 'It is still difficult to talk about a specific date for a meeting between the two leaders,' said Yuri Ushakov, Putin's foreign policy aide. Russia sketched out some of its perspectives on future talks to ending the fighting in Ukraine, arguing that settling the war required a reorganisation of Europe's defence agreements.
European leaders held an emergency meeting in Paris a day earlier, but struggled to put on a united front. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in Turkiye on Tuesday, said on the eve of the talks that he was not invited and would not 'recognise any things or any agreements about us without us'. Isolated by the West for three years, Russia is hoping for a 'restoration' of ties with the United States and a comeback to the international arena. Both Russia and the United States have cast Tuesday's meeting as the beginning of a potentially lengthy process and downplayed the prospects of a breakthrough. Russia's Ushakov told state media the talks would discuss 'how to start negotiations on Ukraine'.
Trump has said he wants to end the war in Ukraine, but has thus far presented no concrete plan. The United States has urged both sides that concessions will have to be made if any peace talks materialise. Russia on the eve of the summit said there cannot be even a 'thought' on it giving up territory seized from Ukraine.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington was aiming for a 'fair' and 'sustainable' solution to the Ukraine war, after a meeting with his Russian counterpart in Riyadh. In remarks to reporters after the Saudi-hosted meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Rubio said that 'the goal is to bring an end to this conflict in a way that's fair, enduring, sustainable and acceptable to all parties involved'. Rubio said that European nations would have to be involved in talks on ending the war, and that 'extraordinary opportunities existed to partner' with Russia. 'The key to unlock that is the end to this conflict,' he said. Rubio and Lavrov agreed to 'lay the groundwork for future cooperation on matters of mutual geopolitical interest and historic economic and investment opportunities which will emerge from a successful end to the conflict in Ukraine', the spokeswoman said. Rubio said he was 'convinced' that Moscow was willing to engage in a 'serious process' to end the war.
The Kremlin said on Tuesday that Ukraine had the 'right' to join the European Union, but not the Nato military alliance. It also said Putin was 'ready' to negotiate with Zelensky 'if necessary', though repeated its questioning of his 'legitimacy' -- a reference to his five-year term expiring last year, despite Ukrainian law not requiring elections during wartime. The Ukrainian leader was in Turkey on Tuesday for discussions on the conflict with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. He is due in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, though he said he does not plan to meet with US or Russian officials. — AFP