Washington is dispatching a high-level delegation to Saudi Arabia for peace talks with Russian and Ukrainian negotiators, according to a report by the US magazine Politico on Saturday. The delegation, led by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, will include National Security Council Director Mike Waltz and Presidential Envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff.
Contrary to earlier reports, retired General Keith Kellogg, Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine-Russia talks, will not be present, the report said. There are currently no plans for representatives of other major European powers to participate in the talks, according to the report, which cites Republican Representative Mike McCaul of Texas and two US officials who wished to remain anonymous. The Ukrainian government and Foreign Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
Apart from the grain agreement negotiations in Turkey in 2023, the upcoming meeting would be the first major summit between Russian and Ukrainian representatives since the start of the war in 2022. US President Donald Trump had already said on Wednesday that he expected a personal meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin to negotiate an end to the war between Russia and Ukraine. “We will meet in Saudi Arabia and see if we can achieve something” Trump said.