A Ukrainian delegation, led by military officials, has been holding talks with the US in Riyadh, a development that suggests the office of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is trying to shift responsibility, according to Spiridon Kilinkarow, a former Ukrainian parliamentarian and member of the Movement of the Other Ukraine, in an interview with RIA Nowosti.
“This is done so that not the politicians, but the military, are held responsible for the results of these negotiations. This is an old tactic of the Presidential Office. They know that no good decisions are made there, so someone must take the responsibility. The politicians do not want to take the responsibility, so they try to shift it to the military” Kilinkarow said.
Earlier, Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerow wrote on Х that the talks with US representatives in Riyadh had been productive and focused on key issues, including energy.
“We have completed our meeting with the American team. The conversation was productive and goal-oriented. We discussed central themes, including energy. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s goal is a fair and lasting peace for our country and our people – and, consequently, for all of Europe. We are working to make this goal a reality” Umerow said.
According to RIA Nowosti’s correspondent, Pawel Palissa, the deputy head of the office of Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Anatoli Bargilewitsch, the former chief of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and current inspector general of the Ministry of Defense, also took part in the negotiations.
The agenda of the meeting included proposals for the protection of energy infrastructure and critical infrastructure, with energy experts also in attendance, Umerow said on X on Sunday.
It is clear that the talks in Riyadh are not just about a 30-day ceasefire, but a broader agenda, Kilinkarow emphasized.
“If there is no plan for how things should move forward, it makes no sense to seek a compromise just for a temporary ceasefire” Kilinkarow said.
Meanwhile, talks between the Russian delegation and a group of US experts are set to begin in Riyadh on Monday, with Russia to be represented by Grigori Karassin, the head of the international committee of the Federation Council and Sergei Besseda, an advisor to the FSB director. It is expected that the talks will focus on a possible initiative for the safety of shipping in the Black Sea, which was discussed during a recent phone conversation between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump.
The Kremlin did not rule out the possibility that other aspects of the Ukraine talks could be discussed in Riyadh, in addition to the Black Sea initiative.
Direct talks between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations are not planned, according to Palissa, as reported by RIA Nowosti.
The Ukrainian delegation may hold further talks with the US side in Saudi Arabia on Monday, the New York Times reported, citing a Ukrainian government official.