4.5 Hours Meeting In Saudi Arabia, Russia-US Will Continue Negotiations To End War In Ukraine
JAKARTA - United States President Donald Trump's administration said on Tuesday it agreed to hold more negotiations with Russia to end the war in Ukraine after an initial meeting in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday.
The 4.5-hour meeting began at around 01:00 a.m. local time was held at one of the royal family's palaces, Al Diriyah, Albasateen Complex, quoted from TASS on February 19.
Russia was represented by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Aide to President Yury Ushakov, and CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) Kirill Dmitriev.
Meanwhile, the United States was represented by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and Middle East Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.
President Trump said he was more confident about the end of the war after the meeting revealed his possibility of meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin this month.
"Russia wants to do something," President Trump told reporters at Palm Beach, Florida.
Furthermore, he dismissed Ukraine's concerns about not including the meeting, saying Kyiv should have started negotiations earlier.
"I think I have the power to end this war," said President Trump.
Talks in Riyadh were the first meeting between US and Russian officials to discuss how to stop Europe's deadliest conflict since World War Two.
Took an important step forward today to establish enduring peace between Russia and Ukraine.
We are using our global strength to unite countries. The United States wants peace. We want the killing to stop.
Thanks to Saudi Arabia and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for hosting. pic.twitter.com/LdP4WzQjiI
— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) February 18, 2025
Took an import step forward today to an ongoing ending peace between Russia and Ukraine.
We are using our global strength to unite countries. The United States wants peace. We want the killing to stop.
Thanks to Saudi Arabia and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for hosting. pic.twitter.com/LdP4WzQjiI
Ukraine says it will not accept any forced deals without its approval.
Prior to the talks, several European politicians accused President Trump's administration of giving Moscow a free concession last week by ruling out NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) membership and winning back 20 percent of its Russian-occupied territory as an illusion.
Meanwhile, US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz told reporters in Riyadh the war had to end permanently and this would involve negotiations over the territory.
"The practical reality is that there will be some discussions about the region and there will be discussions about security guarantees," he said.
The two sides said no date had yet been set for a meeting between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, who both wanted to hold a meeting.
Rapid-moving diplomacy, which began with phone calls by leaders of the White House and Kremlin just six days ago, has sparked concern in Ukraine and the European capital that the two leaders could make a quick deal that ignores their security interests.
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Tuesday's talks also sparked concerns in Washington, which has supported Ukraine's defenses with billions of dollars in military aid approved by the US Congress bipartisanly.
"Russia has won the First Round," said Democratic Party politician Jake Auchincloss who is one of the chairmen of the bipartisan causal of the Ukrainian House of Representatives.
"Kremlin has been normalized in bilateral diplomacy that excludes Ukraine and NATO, and they don't sacrifice anything to get it," he said.