Senior Ukrainian and US officials have begun a high-stakes meeting in Saudi Arabia, discussing how to end Russia's war against Ukraine amid recent tensions between Kyiv and Washington and intensifying fighting on the battlefield.
Ukrainian delegation leader Andriy Yermak, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's chief of staff, said that "protection of Ukrainian interests" and "a clear vision of ending the war" were on Kyiv's agenda for the one-day talks in Jeddah on March 11.
"A cease-fire in the three-year war the Russian Federation has waged on my country has never seemed closer," Yermak wrote in an op-ed published in the Guardian newspaper on day of the meeting.
"A cease-fire in Ukraine will not come through diplomatic gestures alone," he added. "This includes putting political and financial pressure on Russia to raise the cost of renewed conflict."
The talks come 11 days after a contentious White House meeting between Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump that inflamed relations between the two countries following Trump’s refusal to include any security guarantees in a potential deal for joint development of Ukrainian rare minerals and other resources. In the aftermath, Washington paused military aid to Ukraine and restricted intelligence sharing on the battlefield.
Oleksandr Merezhko, the head of Ukrainian parliament's foreign affairs committee, told RFE/RL that the meeting should be seen as a "first step towards improving relations between the new Trump administration and Ukraine" and a "direct meeting" between Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump.
"I expect that we will hear from our American friends whether there is any strategy from Trump regarding Ukraine, regarding how to stop Russian aggression," he said. "Because the latest statements of President Trump, they raise a lot of questions."
Whether the United States is prepared to restore aid and intelligence sharing following the talks remains to be seen. Ahead of the meeting, Trump said that his administration had “just about” ended its suspension of sharing intelligence with Ukraine.
John Herbst, a former US ambassador to Ukraine, said that restoring intelligence cooperation should be seen as a positive result for Kyiv.
“If it's lifted after the talks, that’s a good thing,” Herbst told RFE/RL. “If it's not lifted, that's a sign that the Trump policy of pressuring Ukraine will continue.”
What Does The US Want To Achieve At The Talks With Ukraine?
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is chairing the US negotiating team, said the talks would be focused around understanding what Ukraine would be prepared to concede in a peace deal and reiterated that Ukraine would have to make concessions over territory that Russia currently occupies as part of any agreement to end the war.
“The most important thing that we have to leave here with is a strong sense that Ukraine is prepared to do difficult things, like the Russians are going to have to do difficult things to end this conflict or at least pause it in some way, shape or form,” Rubio told reporters on March 10 as he flew to Jeddah.
Beyond those broad aims, few details about the meeting have been made public. Rubio declined to offer what an outline for a potential agreement would look like, and the State Department declined to comment on whether signing the minerals deal and restoring intelligence sharing would be discussed in Jeddah.
“The only way this war ends is if both Russia and Ukraine come to a negotiating table, and both Russia and Ukraine will have to make tough decisions,” a State Department spokesperson told RFE/RL. “Participation in negotiations will quickly make apparent if both parties are serious about peace.”
Rubio stated that concessions by Kyiv and Moscow would be central to diplomacy and that future talks with Russia will be required to determine what the Kremlin is willing to concede.
“We don’t know how far apart they truly are,” Rubio said.
What Is On The Negotiating Table In Saudi Arabia?
In the meantime, the immediate US focus is on Ukraine and what Kyiv would be willing to accept as part of a peace deal.
Ahead of the talks, Kyiv said it would be prepared to accept a truce for air attacks and at sea, but not yet for fighting on the battlefield.
Ukraine launched a large-scale drone attack that struck Moscow and the surrounding region overnight, a display of its capabilities in the air.
Also expected at the talks were Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha and US national-security adviser Mike Waltz.
Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Middle East envoy, said last week that he hoped discussions would include a “framework” for a potential cease-fire and peace deal during the talks. Witkoff will reportedly travel to Moscow to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin later this week.
Other issues that have been floated include territorial concessions by Ukraine, reaching a cease-fire, and potentially holding elections in Ukraine.
Ukrainian opposition leaders recently said they were against the possibility of wartime elections in the country after media reports suggested US officials had approached them about the idea amid pressure from the Trump administration for Ukraine to hold elections in the event of a cease-fire or peace deal, or possibly earlier.
Zelenskyy also has repeatedly talked about the importance of exchanging hostages, and of his demand for Russia to return abducted Ukrainian children.
Herbst said sequencing in future negotiations will be crucial. While an early cease-fire can be key part of a future peace process, he stresses that it's important that it be followed by further steps towards a lasting peace deal, such as continued military shipments to Ukraine, a potential demilitarized zone, and a greater role for European countries, including their forces deployed as peacekeepers.
“These are all serious ideas that have been floated,” Herbst said. “That might not be a just peace, because a just peace wouldn’t see Ukraine have to concede territory, but it could still be a durable one that makes it very hard for Russia to renew aggression.”
What Role Will Russia And Europe Play In Peace Talks?
As Ukrainian and US officials gauge each other on what is possible for future peace talks, attention also shifts to the other two players that will decide how the war ends: Russia and Kyiv’s European allies.
With the meeting in Jeddah under way, top military officials from more than 30 nations are set to meet in Paris on March 11 for talks on the creation of an international security force for Ukraine.
The force is being envisaged by Britain and France. Its aim is to reassure Ukraine and deter another large-scale Russian offensive after any cease-fire. The force might include heavy weaponry and weapons stockpiles that could be rushed within hours or days to aid in Ukraine’s defense.
Russia has so far said it is against accepting European troops in Ukraine as part of a deal.
The Kremlin has also spoken about getting Western sanctions lifted on its economy as part of a peace process, including in Saudi Arabia when US and Russian officials held talks nearly a month ago.
Marie Dumoulin, a former French diplomat and an analyst at the European Council on Foreign Relations, says that this gives European governments some leverage when the dust settles from the talks in Jeddah.
She said that doubts remain in European capitals about whether Russia is willing to make any concessions of its own and that Europe can use both its own offer of security guarantees to Ukraine and the possibility of lifting European Union sanctions on Russia as a way to shape discussions in both Moscow and Washington.
“This gives Ukraine a few more cards to hold at the table,” Dumoulin told RFE/RL. “These can give Ukraine some room to say whether the deal being offered to them is good enough yet or not.”
By RFE/RL
