No seat for Ukraine as US and Russia hold crucial talks in Saudi Arabia

Top diplomats from the US and Russia are set to meet in Saudi Arabia, with Ukraine left out of the talks as tensions rise over the ongoing conflict and efforts for peace

Top diplomats from the US and Russia will meet in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. This is the first high-level engagement between the two nations since US President Donald Trump took office. The discussions aim to reset strained relations and explore a possible path toward ending the war in Ukraine.

 

While both sides have downplayed expectations of a breakthrough, the meeting itself has triggered alarm in Ukraine and across Europe. The US administration’s overtures to the Kremlin have raised concerns about the potential geopolitical shift, particularly in light of European leaders gathering in Paris for emergency talks.

 

Ukraine left out of key talks

 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed that Kyiv was not invited to the discussions in Riyadh, fuelling fears of negotiations happening without Ukraine’s direct involvement. “Kyiv did not know anything about the talks,” Zelenskyy told Ukrainian news agencies. “We cannot recognise any things or any agreements about us without us.”

 

He further emphasised on social media that any peace deal must include “robust and reliable” security guarantees, echoing calls from France and Britain, though not all European nations support this stance.

 

Trump-Putin summit in the works?

 

One key agenda item is the potential for a summit between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump is pushing for a swift resolution to the three-year conflict in Ukraine, while Russia sees an opportunity to gain diplomatic concessions.

 

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the meeting would focus on “restoring the whole complex of Russian-American relations” and discussions on “possible negotiations on a Ukrainian resolution, and organising a meeting between the two presidents”.

 

Russia has long sought bilateral talks with the US on broad security concerns beyond just Ukraine, making it clear that Nato’s military presence in Eastern Europe remains a point of contention. Before Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, Putin had demanded that Nato remove troops, equipment, and bases from several Eastern European nations.

 

Who’s at the discussion table?

 

Representing Russia will be Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and senior Putin aide Yuri Ushakov, while the US delegation will include Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff. 

Despite the high-profile attendees, both sides acknowledge that the talks are just the beginning of a lengthy process. 

“I don’t think that people should view this as something that is about details or moving forward in some kind of a negotiation,” said US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce.  Russia’s Ushakov reinforced this, stating that discussions would revolve around "how to start negotiations on Ukraine.”

 

Ukraine’s next moves

 

As the Riyadh talks unfold, Zelensky is set to travel to Turkey to meet with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday before heading to Saudi Arabia a day later. However, Zelensky’s spokesperson clarified that he does not plan to meet either the US or Russian delegations. 

Zelensky has expressed willingness to meet Putin, but only after Kyiv and its allies establish a unified stance on how to end the war.

 

Geopolitical implications

 

The decision to hold these critical talks in Riyadh has not gone unnoticed by analysts. Previously sidelined by the former US administration, Saudi Arabia is now playing a key diplomatic role under Trump’s leadership.

 

“Europe’s the traditional meeting place for the Americans and the Russians, but that’s not an option in the current environment,” said James Dorsey of the National University of Singapore. "You either go to Asia or you go to Saudi Arabia.”

 

Meanwhile, Russia enters these negotiations with battlefield momentum, while Ukraine faces uncertainty over continued US military aid — a policy that Trump has long criticised.

 

[With AFP inputs]