The high-level meeting in Riyadh seeks to lay the groundwork for settling the Ukraine conflict

Russian and US delegations have begun high-level talks in Saudi Arabia aimed at restoring diplomatic relations and paving the way for a settlement of the Ukraine conflict.

The meeting in Riyadh is attended by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, President Vladimir Putin’s top foreign policy aide, Yury Ushakov, and Kirill Dmitriev, the CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF). The US is represented by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, and Steve Witkoff, the special envoy for the Middle East.

Neither Ukraine nor its EU backers are taking part in the talks. In the run-up to the meeting, Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky signaled that Kiev was not invited and that it “considers any negotiations about Ukraine that are being held without Ukraine as having no results.”

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Russian officials previously said the key goals of the talks include “restoring the entire complex of Russian-American relations,” as well as “preparing for possible negotiations on the Ukrainian settlement” and laying the groundwork for a summit between Putin and US President Donald Trump.

The high-stakes talks became possible after a phone call between Trump and Putin last week. Following the conversation, Trump said he does not think it is “practical” for Ukraine to join NATO, adding that Kiev has very little chance of regaining territory that has become part of Russia over the past decade.

Moscow has said the conflict can only be sustainably resolved if Ukraine commits to permanent neutrality, demilitarization, denazification, and recognizes the territorial reality on the ground.