Several hours after Ukraine's drone attacks on the city and region of Moscow, peace negotiations in Saudi Arabia regarding Ukraine began.
The US and Ukrainian delegations started peace negotiations today in the city of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, at the Ritz-Carlton hotel. Representing Kiev in the negotiations are Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibikha and Defense Minister Rustem Umerov. Volodymyr Zelensky is not participating in the negotiations.
The US delegation is led by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is considered the highest-ranking American representative in the negotiations. The delegation also includes Trump's National Security Advisor, Waltz.
Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukrainian President's office, posted photos of the ongoing negotiations on the social network "X". According to him, the delegations have "actively started" in Jeddah. .
In his subsequent statement, he emphasized that the negotiations began in a "very constructive manner".
US representatives want to find out if Ukraine is ready to "take complex steps" to achieve peace.
This was announced by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. He is participating in today's negotiations and also participated in negotiations between American and Russian representatives in Riyadh last month.
Rubio told journalists that if Ukraine and the US could reach a mutual agreement and if it is acceptable for Donald Trump, the US administration might accelerate the peace negotiation process.
"We must conclude here that both Ukraine and Russia must be ready to make difficult decisions to end the war," — he said.
Rubio stated that no conditions would be imposed on Ukraine, but it is important to understand how prepared Kiev is.
"We will listen to how ready they are and compare it with the demands of the Russians. That's when we can see the real difference."
In previous statements, Rubio mentioned that Ukraine must be prepared for some territorial concessions and that reclaiming all its territories might be impossible.
According to two high-ranking Ukrainian sources, Kyiv will propose a temporary ceasefire on strikes from long-distance missiles and in the Black Sea during the negotiations.
The issue of prisoner exchange is also included in the negotiations.
According to the Associated Press, Ukraine is also ready to sign an agreement on strategically important minerals with the US within the framework of the negotiations.
Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukrainian President's office, stated on his Telegram page that Ukraine entered the negotiations with a "clear concept to end the war".
Kyiv also intends to persuade the US to restart the military assistance and intelligence-sharing processes that were halted last week.
According to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, if Ukraine promises to seriously commit to the peace process, these two issues might be reconsidered.
"The reason for stopping the assistance was that we believed Ukraine was not seriously approaching the negotiations. If this changes, US policy can also change significantly."
Rubio expressed hope for significant results from the negotiations and moving to a new phase in the peace process. "I hope that tomorrow we will have good negotiations and see the situation from a different perspective," said the US Secretary of State.
It should be noted, despite calls from Kyiv, US officials are reluctant to discuss Ukraine's demands to restore its borders from 2014 or 2022.
The negotiations are ongoing.
Abdulloh Sayyid
