Exclusive: Behind Closed Doors as US and Russia Plot Ukraine War Peace – But Where’s Kyiv?
On Wednesday, the United States and Russia met at a high level in Riyadh, agreeing to work together to end the Ukraine conflict and strengthen diplomatic and economic ties. The meeting takes place as the conflict in Ukraine approaches its three-year anniversary.
Following the meeting, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov confirmed this.
Following the meeting, Rubio told the Associated Press that Russia and the United States agreed to focus on and achieve three major goals: restoring staffing at their respective embassies in both countries, forming a high-level team to work on Ukraine peace talks, and exploring closer relations and economic cooperation.
Lavrov also described the conversation as “very useful” and stated, “We not only listened, but also heard each other.”
“I have reason to believe that the American side has started to better understand our position,” said the minister.
The meeting, which aimed to promote peace in Ukraine, did not include any Ukrainian representatives. This represents a significant diplomatic shift in the US’ handling of the war under the Trump administration, as Ukraine’s participation in such talks was critical during Biden’s tenure. Ukraine’s President Zelensky has also stated that the country will not agree to the outcome of the talks because it did not participate in them.
What Donald Trump said
Following the meeting, Donald Trump stated that Russia wants to end “barbarianism” in its war with Ukraine. “Russia wants to do something. They want to put an end to the barbarism that is taking place over there. Thousands of soldiers are being killed every week. Apart from Russian and Ukrainian soldiers, many Koreans have been killed. We want to put an end to it,” he said during a press conference at the White House.
He also blamed Ukraine for not ending the war sooner, claiming that the “senseless” war would not have erupted if he had been president. “Today I heard, ‘Oh, well, we weren’t invited.’ So, you’ve been there for three years. You should have ended it after three years.You shouldn’t have started it. “You could have made a deal,” he told AP.
Trump also stated that he might meet with his Russian counterpart Putin later this month, but no date has been set for a summit between the two.
