Ukrainian and American officials have hoped to hold a meeting in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, since the oval offices yelled the president between the president last month, to find a way to stop the bloodiest European war of a generation.
However, the US, Ukraine and Russia seem to have very different ideas about what a ceasefire should look like. And two of the three took a step forward to fill these gaps on Tuesday. It's a few hours after Ukraine and Russia began a fatal strike on each other's territory.
In the conference room at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Jeddah city, Secretary of State Marko Rubio and US national security adviser Michael Waltz sat in a Kiev delegation led by Andri Yamak, headed by Ukrainian President Andri Yamak, Foreign Minister Andri Sheebikh and Defense Minister Ras Umerov.
“We want to have a very constructive, deep, friendly partner conversation,” Yermak said before consultations began.
Waltz said after more than two hours of consultations, he showed up for a break and said, “We've got there.” He did not provide further details.
Ukraine suggests an immediate halt of air and sea strikes, but wants security guarantees before infantry drops their arms. The United States calls for an immediate, comprehensive ceasefire. And while Russia is not in talks, it shows that it wants its own concession before it stops the war that began.
If Ukrainian proposals to halt air and sea strikes were agreed, it would result in the first negotiation cuts of the three-year war battle, but the Trump administration has made it clear that it is looking for more. Ukraine provided an unconditional ceasefire on long-range strikes as a confidence-building measure, continuing consultations on a more comprehensive ceasefire.
Rubio said Ukraine must concessions on the land that Russia has taken since 2014 as part of the peace deal.
“The most important thing we have to leave here is a strong sense of Ukraine being prepared to do things that are difficult, so that Russians have to do things that are difficult, in order to end this conflict or in some way pause it,” Rubio told reporters on Monday.
Yermak, the Ukrainian president's chief of staff, said on Tuesday that his delegation was “very open” to any dialogue that would bring about a settlement, but pointed out the importance of security assurances, pointing to a controversial issue in negotiations with the United States.
These are the first high-level in-person meetings between the US and Ukraine since the White House meeting between President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodimia Zelensky on February 28th was disbanded by discussion and insult. “You've spoken enough,” Trump told Zelensky at one point. “You won't win.”
Since then, Zelensky has been trying to smoothen his relationship with Trump, and Ukrainian officials have been paying attention to the framework of their proposal. Over the weekend, French and British officials led Ukrainian delegations on how to speak to Americans, Ukrainian officials said.
Ukraine was not allowed to publicly speak about the delegation's plans, saying it supports a ceasefire at sea and in the air, but it may raise the idea tentatively. “I don't know if the Russians are ready for measures to be taken for peace,” the official said, adding that Ukrainians will ask if the Americans who spoke separately from the Russians have insight into Moscow's position.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitri S. Peskov said Tuesday that it is “not possible to talk about his current position” and that Russia hopes that the US will inform Moscow about the outcome of its talks with Ukraine. Trump's envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkov, will visit Russia in the coming days, according to anyone familiar with the issue that called for anonymity to discuss internal plans.
Last week, Zelensky proposed a partial ceasefire with support from French President Emmanuel Macron. Russia does not respond directly. The Ukrainian president is also calling for the exchange of prisoners of war for all prisoners, a traditional trustworthy measure in peace negotiations.
The proposals Ukraine is bringing to Jeddah are the most detailed ever. In return, it seeks immediate lawsuits from the United States: resuming American military aid and information sharing, suspended after the elliptical office fiasco.
According to the Ukrainian commander on the field, Russian soldiers, especially those who are rapidly advancing Russian soldiers supported by North Korean fighters, have already been impeded by combat.
This picture looks somewhat different from the late eastern Ukraine, when Kiev's troops stagnated Russian attacks and acquired small patches of small lands. Since the beginning of the month, Russia has only won five square miles of Ukraine's territory.
Rubio refused to outline the potential agreement, but made clear that concessions were important. He said it is important to learn what Russia is willing to acknowledge. “I don't know they're really far apart,” he said.
“I think both parties need to understand that there is no military solution to this situation,” Rubio said.
It is unclear whether Trump will be sufficient to resume sharing intelligence and resume weapons shipments, which could involve an agreement with Ukraine to share revenues from mineral extraction with the United States.
Trump pushed fighters to stop the fight as quickly as possible without initial negotiations that could include mechanisms to protect peace. At the oval office meeting, he insisted that a ceasefire could be achieved more quickly than a peace agreement, and that Russian President Vladimir V. Putin would follow his words.
Russia violated two previous ceasefires reached in 2014 and 2015, denying its intention to invade just days before its invasion in 2022.
In an interview with Fox News on Sunday Morning Futures, Trump reiterated that he thought Zelensky wasn't grateful for US military aid.
Trump also said he saw “some weakness” with Russia that encouraged discussions. “You know, you need two,” he said.
Russia has publicly asked to impose conditions before the ceasefire comes into effect, indicating that Putin wants to secure concessions from Ukraine and the West.
Analysts believe they have acquired additional land so far, seeking to maintain Russian territory. Putin demands assurance that Ukraine will not join NATO due to retreat by the Western Alliance from Central and Eastern Europe and restrictions on the size and firepower of Ukrainian forces.
“We must choose a version of peace that suits us. It will gently guarantee our country with a long-term historical perspective,” Putin said Thursday.
Russia also calls for Ukraine to hold a presidential election, claiming Zelensky's control is illegal. The Ukrainian elections scheduled for spring 2024 have been suspended due to the war.
For Ukraine, consultations present an intellect challenge of the opinion that they will adapt to allies who are currently adopting enemy positions. Both Russia and the Trump administration questioned Zelensky's legitimacy and accused Ukraine of starting a war.
The United States also does not provide support for the role of Ukraine's European peacekeeping forces under the ceasefire.
Ukraine's broader goal in consultations with the US is to delay efforts to war against Russia under Trump from the US geopolitical pivot. It may buy time for European states to enhance aid, analysts and former Ukrainian officials said.
Olisia Ratzevich, Ukrainian analyst at London-based institute Chatham House, said: “There's nothing Zelensky can do. Ukraine is ready to compromise, but will not surrender. Ukrainian leaders don't want to be friendly with Trump and Putin.”
Ukraine is unlikely to argue that there is a mechanism for enforcing a ceasefire, said former Ukrainian defense minister Andri Zagorodnyuk. Russia is likely to rebuild its troops at a pause in combat, he said.
“We have nothing, and if Russia is energizing their troops, they are ready to attack again,” Zagorodnik said in a phone interview.
Report contributed Mark Soundtrack From Kyiv, Ukraine Anton Troiannovsky From Berlin, Ivan Nechepurenko From Tbilisi, Georgia Maggie Harberman From Washington Aurelien Breeden From Paris.
