Foreign Minister Marco Rubio met officials from Saudi Arabia on Monday before planning talks in the country between US diplomats and Russian counterparts aimed at negotiating the end of the Ukraine war.
US National Security Adviser Michael Waltz and Steve Witkeov, the American special envoy to the Middle East, joined in a meeting with the Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman in his palace in the capital of his athletes. Rubio also met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al -Aswad earlier on Monday after traveling to his leadership from Israel during his first trip to the Middle East as the state minister.
TVs are scheduled to be held on Tuesday in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia between the United States and Russia. Ukrainian officials are expected to be absent from the negotiating table.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Tami Bruce said that Rubio, Valz and Wikkov, will meet the Russian delegation.
National Security Adviser says that Putin, Zelinski agrees, “Only President Trump can move them to the table.”
Foreign Minister Marco Rubio will meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh on February 17, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin’s Foreign Affairs Adviser Yori Ushakov set out to the Saudi capital on Monday, according to Russian state television.
In his speech to correspondents in Moscow on Monday, Lavrov said he was looking to put a “completely abnormal period” of separation between the United States and Russia behind them, according to the Washington Post.
“We want to listen to our partners,” Lavrov said.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the talks will focus mainly on “the restoration of a full set of relations between the United States and Russian, as well as the preparation of possible talks on Ukrainian settlement and the organization of presidents.”
Bruce said the meeting aims to determine the danger of the Russians over the desire for peace and whether detailed negotiations could be started.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will receive Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al -Soud, Foreign Minister Marco Rubio, at the headquarters of the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Riyadh on February 17, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
“I think, it is clear that everyone is to determine whether this is something that can move forward,” she told reporters who travel with Rubio in his head.
Bruce said that although Ukraine will not be on the table for talks on Tuesday, the actual peace negotiations will only take place with the participation of Ukraine.
Tuesday’s Tuesday talks are expected to set the basis for the summit between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump said he spoke to Putin on the phone last week, and they agreed that our teams from negotiations will start immediately. “The years in which the American policy, which ends the insulation of Moscow during February 24, 2022, invaded Ukraine. Trump called Zelinski after that to inform him of his conversation.
On Sunday, Trump told the correspondents that Zellinsky would “participate” but did not explain.
A White House official says Zelinski does not sign after the “short -sighted” American economic agreement.
Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron will hold an emergency meeting between the main European powers in Paris on Monday to discuss Russia-Ukraine’s conflict.
Speaking to Fox News, “Sold on Sunday morning,” Wittakov said that he will be Waltz “will be” holding meetings in the direction of the president “, and I hope that” some really good progress for Russia Ukraine. “
Witkoff did not respond directly to a question about whether Ukraine should abandon an “important part” of its territory as part of any negotiation settlement. Defense Minister Beit Higseth said last week that NATO membership in Ukraine was unrealistic and suggested that Kiev give up her hopes to win all its territory from Russia.
The Ukrainian president said on Monday, his country has not been invited to the upcoming talks and will not accept the result if Kiev does not participate. Zelinski said at a phone conference with journalists from the United Arab Emirates, according to A. Zelinski said that he will travel to Türkiye on Monday and to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, but his journey was not related to the United States talks to Russia.
Rubio will meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in his head on February 17, 2025. On a separate sofa, Valz and the United States of America. Witkoff, not photographed, was on another sofa in the room. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
In his appearance on “Fox News Sunday”, Waltz rejected the idea that European allies are not consulted to negotiate at the European meeting with the allies. Pesin traveled, in particular, to Kiev, while Vance met with Ukrainian President Folodimir Zelinski on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.
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Waltz said that one of the main tenants in negotiating a peace agreement is a guarantee of a “permanent end of war”, describing how the conflict was transferred “to the meat mill similar to the First World War of Humans.” He said that the long -term military security guarantees must be led by Europe, and criticize how a third of NATO countries do not contribute to what they agreed upon a decade ago.
As for billions in the United States, the aid sent to Ukraine during the Biden administration, Waltz said that the American people “deserve compensation, and it deserves to be a kind of recovery for the billions they invested in this war.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.