U.S. and Russia hold over 4-hour talks in Saudi Arabia

This is reported by CNN and RIA Novosti.

“Negotiations between the Russian and U.S. delegations have begun in Riyadh,” the Russian media outlet wrote.

According to Lavrov, the talks will aim to end the “abnormal period” in relations between the two “great powers.” The discussion may also lay the groundwork for a potential meeting between President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

The U.S. delegation includes Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, and Special Envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff.

Meanwhile, Russia has sent Putin’s aide Yuri Ushakov, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, and the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund Kirill Dmitriev.

Additionally, the negotiations include Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud and Saudi National Security Advisor Musaed bin Mohammed Al-Aiban.

Around 1:00 p.m. (Kyiv time), the first session of talks between Russia and the United States ended. According to RIA Novosti, the officials went to lunch. After that, they plan to continue the dialog.

What Russia says about the results of the talks

After 4.5 hours of discussions, the U.S.-Russia negotiations have concluded. According to Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov, who spoke to Russian media, the talks went “quite well.”

“Russia and the U.S. have agreed to take each other’s interests into account. It is still difficult to say that Russia and the U.S. are getting closer, but there was a discussion about it,” said a Russian representative.

He also noted that it is currently difficult to name a specific date for the meeting between Putin and Trump, but it is unlikely to take place next week.

“Separate negotiation teams from Russia and the U.S. on Ukraine will establish contact. It is not yet known who will be part of the Russian delegation for the Ukraine negotiations — this will be decided by the president,” Ushakov added.

What the U.S. Department of State says

The U.S. Department of State said that Marco Rubio and Sergey Lavrov agreed during their talks to establish a consultation mechanism to address “stressors” in U.S.-Russian relations, Sky News Arabia reports.

The State Department also reported that Rubio and Lavrov agreed to appoint a high-level group to begin work on ways to end the war in Ukraine as soon as possible.

Ukraine's response

The Advisor on Communications to the Head of the President’s Office, Dariia Zarivna, responded to the start of negotiations between the U.S. and Russia, calling it “an attempt to bring Russia back to the beginning of the conversation with the West about rules and justice.”

“Russia, on the other hand, is trying to manipulate and stall for time because Putin has never wanted justice; his only goal is the destruction of Ukraine and the restoration of Russian influence in Eastern Europe in the Soviet-style model,” she emphasized.

Negotiations in Saudi Arabia: background

Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump stated that officials from Russia and the U.S. would soon meet in Saudi Arabia for negotiations regarding the war against Ukraine. According to him, Ukraine would also be part of the discussion.

Later, it was reported that Saudi Arabia had approved a phone conversation between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin and expressed its readiness to host their summit on its territory.

On Tuesday, February 18, a meeting between senior officials from the United States and Russia may take place in Saudi Arabia, according to reports from Russian and international media.

On February 17, Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Presidential Aide Yuri Ushakov would represent Russia at the negotiations.

On February 17, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Kyiv was unaware of the U.S.-Russia negotiations in Saudi Arabia and would not recognize any agreements concerning Ukraine made without Ukraine’s participation.