US has given up lead role on resolving war in Ukraine: Zelenskyy's advisor

A Ukrainian presidential advisor claimed on Wednesday that the US has weakened its position and relinquished the diplomatic lead to Russia ahead of any possible peace talks on Ukraine, following a meeting in Saudi Arabia between top American and Russian diplomats.

The remarks by Mykhailo Podolyak, an advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, came a day after President Donald Trump falsely suggested that Kyiv was to blame for the war, which is entering its fourth year next week.

The US-Russia talks in Riyadh, the Saudi capital, were held without Ukraine and its European allies.

"Why should dominance be handed over to a country that is an aggressor, a violator of international law, and the author of aggression against Ukraine?" Podolyak said. "We still do not understand this strategy."  Podolyak said Ukraine was neither briefed on the talks ahead of them or on their outcome.

"To me, the concept of 'peace through strength', which the American administration promotes, sounds strange," he said, adding that what was on display in Riyadh from the American side was weakness.

"This contradiction is quite odd," he added. "Therefore, 'peace through weakness' in relation to Russia -- for Europe and the US -- is impossible. That would instead be peace through violence."  Trump echoed Russian narratives on Wednesday, claiming that Zelenskyy, whose term expired last year, must face elections, while Kyiv, citing its constitution, maintains that elections cannot be held during wartime. The US president then escalated this claim by posting on social media that Zelenskyy was "a Dictator without Elections".

"Putin fiercely hates Mr Zelenskyy. He understands that he cannot break him. He has been unable to do so for three years," Podolyak said.

He suggested that Russia might seek to interfere in Ukraine's electoral process -- should elections take place -- to "create significant internal tension and conflict" internally in Ukraine.