Russian and American officials met in Saudi Arabia today for talks on improving relations and negotiating an end to the war in Ukraine – with Kyiv absent from the discussions and insisting it will not accept a peace deal without a seat at the table.
The meeting in Riyadh marks a major step by the Trump administration to improve relations with Moscow and reverse US policy on isolating Russia, and is meant to pave the way for a meeting between President Trump and Vladimir Putin.
Trump earlier this month upended US policy by holding a surprise phone call with Putin about beginning negotiations, sparking panic in Kyiv and among European allies that they will be frozen out of talks.
Ukrainian officials are not taking part in today’s meeting, and President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday that his country will not accept the outcome of any discussions if Kyiv does not have a say in its own future.
‘We cannot recognise any things or agreements about us without us. And we will not recognise such agreements,’ Zelensky said, adding that previously ‘it was like bad manners to talk to an aggressor during wartime.’
It comes amid mounting fears in Europe that Trump will withdraw the US security umbrella over the continent and leave the Baltic states at Putin’s mercy.
Sir Keir Starmer called for the US to provide a ‘backstop’ for any deal in Ukraine yesterday as European leaders desperately tried to put on a united front in support of Kyiv ahead of today’s talks.
But the crisis summit in Paris ended in chaos, with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz leaving early and saying he was ‘a little irritated’ by ‘premature’ plans being made ‘over Ukraine’s head’.
Following the meeting, the Kremlin has been laying out its demands and stipulations for peace talks, warning that a lasting settlement in Ukraine is ‘impossible’ without addressing the wider issue of European security.
‘A lasting and long-term viable resolution is impossible without a comprehensive consideration of security issues on the continent,’ spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Moscow taunted Kyiv by saying that Putin was ready to talk to Zelensky ‘if necessary’, before questioning of his legitimacy as Ukrainian president.
