Riyadh: Russia and the US agreed on Tuesday to start working toward ending the war in Ukraine and improving their diplomatic and economic ties, the two countries’ top diplomats said after talks that reflected an extraordinary about-face in US foreign policy under President Donald Trump.
In an interview with AP after the meeting, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the two sides agreed broadly to pursue three goals — restore staffing at their respective embassies in Washington and Moscow, create a high-level team to support Ukraine peace talks and explore closer relations and economic cooperation.
He stressed, however, that the talks — attended by his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov and other senior Russian and US officials — marked the beginning of a conversation, and more work needs to be done.
Lavrov echoed Rubio’s remarks and told reporters that “the conversation was very useful”.
Trump’s national security advisor Michael Waltz and special Mideast envoy Steven Witkoff joined Rubio at the table, along with Lavrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin’s foreign affairs advisor Yuri Ushakov.
No Ukrainian officials were present at the meeting, which came as the beleaguered country is slowly but steadily losing ground against more numerous Russian troops in a grinding war that began nearly three years ago.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country would not accept any outcome from the talks since Kyiv didn’t take part, and postponed his own trip to the kingdom scheduled for Wednesday.
European allies have also expressed concerns that they are being sidelined.
Trump showed little patience for Ukraine’s objections to being excluded from the talks.
“Today I heard, ‘Oh, well, we weren’t invited.’ Well, you been there for three years. You should have ended it three years ago,” Trump said during a news conference at his Florida residence. “You should have never started it. You could have made a deal.”
Ties between Russia and the US have fallen to their lowest level in decades in recent years — a rift that has been widening ever since Russia illegally annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and only worsened after Moscow’s full-scale invasion.
The US, along with European nations, imposed a raft of sanctions on Russia in an effort to damage its economy. And embassies in Washington and Moscow have been hit hard by expulsions of large numbers of diplomats, as well as other restrictions.
Rubio said on Tuesday that ending the war in Ukraine could “unlock the door” for “incredible opportunities” to partner with the Russians on issues of common interest “that hopefully will be good for the world and also improve our relations in the long term”.
His comments were further evidence of the remarkable US reversal on Russia after years in which Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden, led international efforts to isolate Moscow.
Tuesday’s meeting was meant to pave the way for a summit between Trump and Putin. After the talks, Ushakov and Waltz said no date has been set yet for that summit.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Lavrov mentioned the same three goals as Rubio and said that Washington and Moscow agreed to appoint representatives to carry out “regular consultations” on Ukraine.
The meeting marked the most extensive contact between the two countries since Moscow’s February 24, 2022, invasion.
The recent US diplomatic blitz on the war has sent Ukraine and key allies scrambling to ensure a seat at the table amid concerns that Washington and Moscow could press ahead with a deal that won’t be favourable to them.
Kyiv’s absence at Tuesday’s talks rankled many Ukrainians, and France called an emergency meeting of European Union countries and the UK on Monday to discuss the war. Kyiv’s participation in such talks was a bedrock of US policy under Biden.
US State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said the talks were aimed at determining how serious the Russians are about achieving peace and whether detailed negotiations can start.
Rubio said Tuesday that there would be “engagement and consultation with Ukraine, with our partners in Europe and others. But ultimately, the Russian side will be indispensable to this effort”.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said last week that NATO membership for Ukraine was unrealistic and suggested Kyiv should abandon hopes of winning all its territory back from Russia — two key items on Putin’s wish list.
French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday said he spoke by phone to Trump and Zelenskyy following Monday’s European meeting.
The meeting at the Diriyah Palace in the Saudi capital of Riyadh also highlighted de facto leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s efforts to be a major diplomatic player.
Saudi state media described the talks as happening at the prince’s direction. Like the neighbouring UAE, the prince has maintained close relations to Russia throughout its war on Ukraine, both through the OPEC+ oil cartel and diplomatically as well.
Saudi Arabia has also helped in prisoner negotiations and hosted Zelenskyy for an Arab League summit in 2023.
But Zelenskyy postponed his own trip to Saudi Arabia scheduled for this week, suggesting that he wanted to avoid his visit being linked to the talks since Ukrainian officials weren’t invited.
Meanwhile, Russia continued to pummel Ukraine with drones, according to Kyiv’s military. The Ukrainian air force said Russian troops launched a barrage of 176 drones at Ukraine overnight, most of which were destroyed or disabled by jamming.
