Photo: US-Ukraine negotiations underway in Saudi Arabia (t.me/ermaka2022) Author: Maria Kucheryavets
Ukraine and the United States began an official meeting on Tuesday, March 11, the first since a high-profile dispute in the White House. The talks are taking place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
RBC-Ukraine reports what is known about the new round of negotiations between Ukraine and the United States.
First details of the meeting
Updated 12:38. Ukraine also approaches today's talks with the US “very openly”, – Yermak
Before the start of negotiations in Jeddah, the head of the OP stated that the most important thing now is to discuss the most important thing: how to begin a peace process to resolve the war of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.
“And we want to have a very constructive, deep, friendly, partnership-based conversation with our American partners,” Yermak told reporters.
He noted the importance of security guarantees for Ukraine from the United States to prevent Russia from attacking again after an agreement is reached, but added that the priority of the meeting was to launch a process of achieving peace with Moscow through negotiations.
In his column for The Guardian, he wrote that “a ceasefire in Ukraine cannot be achieved through diplomatic gestures alone.” Because political and financial pressure on Russia is needed.
“First, Ukraine needs to be given security guarantees that will add credibility to a future ceasefire agreement. Second, Europe must act decisively to strengthen and deepen sanctions against Russia. And third, Europe must take control of frozen Russian assets to ensure that support for Ukraine is extended and strengthened,” Yermak added.
Updated 12:27. Polish Prime Minister makes statement in support of Ukrainian and US delegations
“Dear Americans, dear Ukrainians, don't miss this chance. Today the whole world is looking at you in Jeddah. Good luck!” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk wrote on social media, addressing the delegations of Ukraine and the United States.
As officially stated by the US State Department, the meeting of the parties will begin at 12:00 local time (11:00 Kyiv time).
At 10:51, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry reported that “a meeting of the Ukrainian and American delegations is beginning in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.”
“The key topics of the meeting will be the path to peace and bilateral relations between Ukraine and the United States,” the Foreign Ministry noted.
The department published a video of the Ukrainian delegation, accompanied by representatives of Saudi Arabia, the country hosting the high-level meeting between Ukraine and the United States.
Ukraine is represented by:
- Head of the Presidential Office Andriy Yermak,
- Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrei Sybiga,
- Minister of Defense Rustem Umerov,
- Yermak's deputy, former commander of the 93rd separate mechanized brigade “Kholodny Yar” Pavel Palisa.
The United States represents:
- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio,
- US National Security Advisor Mike Walz.
Earlier it was reported that the US President's Special Representative for the Middle East Steve Witkoff would also participate in the talks. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry initially named him among the participants, but later edited the post, removing his name. The State Department also did not mention him in the official statement.
Photo: Ermak published a photo from the meeting in Jeddah (t.me/ermaka2022)
“The meeting of the Ukrainian and US delegations in Saudi Arabia has begun. Let's get to work,” Yermak wrote on his Telegram channel.
He later added that “the meeting with the US team started very constructively.”
What Ukraine and the US will talk about
Expectations from Ukraine
It should be noted that first, a meeting between President Volodymyr Zelensky and the Crown Prince took place in Saudi Arabia, followed by a meeting of delegations from Ukraine and the United States without the presence of the Ukrainian head of state.
According to Zelensky, Kyiv “will have a clear intention to be constructive.” He expressed hope that “it will be possible to discuss and agree on the necessary decisions and steps.”
Yermak, in turn, reported that the Ukrainian side’s agenda includes the protection of Ukrainian interests and a clear vision of ending the war.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry had previously announced that the parties would talk about the “path to peace,” Ukrainian-American bilateral relations and strategic partnership and its further development.
Both the Ukrainian and American sides did not rule out the possibility that an agreement on fossil fuels, which was supposed to be concluded during Zelensky's visit to Washington on February 28, could be signed.
Expectations from the US
Rubio, who leads the US delegation, said the American side wants to hear from Ukraine during the talks in Jeddah “what concessions it can make for the sake of peace.”
“After the meeting of the U.S. and Ukrainian representatives in Saudi Arabia, Trump will decide whether to resume military aid to Ukraine or not,” Rubio said in an interview en route to Saudi Arabia.
He also said that he had no plans to talk with the Ukrainian president in Jeddah. However, he did not rule out the possibility of an informal conversation with the Ukrainian head of state outside of official meetings.
In turn, Witkoff confirmed that the meeting is aimed at “setting a framework for a peace agreement.”
“I think the more important topic of discussion for us is concluding a peace agreement,” he told reporters.
The US President's National Security Advisor also shared his expectations for the meeting. According to him, the meeting will focus on “achieving a truce.”
“We had some preliminary conversations with the Russians, the Ukrainians had a great opportunity to bring our economies together with that mineral deal. Unfortunately, it didn't go so well. But I think we can get back to that,” Walz said.
What preceded the new round of negotiations
Recall that the new round of talks between Kyiv and Washington are taking place against the backdrop of US President Donald Trump's order to suspend military aid and intelligence data to Ukraine following a public dispute on February 28 in the Oval Office between Zelensky, Trump and US Vice President J.D. Vance.
Then, after the quarrel, the American president declared that the Ukrainian head of state was “not ready for peace.” The Ukrainian president left the White House early without signing the minerals agreement.
At the same time, on March 4, Zelensky declared his readiness to work “under the strong leadership” of Trump for the sake of peace. He proposed an initiative for a ceasefire in the air and at sea between Ukraine and the Russian Federation, “so that then we can very quickly go through all the next stages and, together with the United States, agree on a strong final agreement.”
Trump himself says he expects “good results” from talks between American and Ukrainian officials in Saudi Arabia, and says the U.S. is close to lifting the “pause” in sharing intelligence with Ukraine.
“I think we're going to make significant progress this week,” Trump said yesterday about his expectations for the talks.
Read more about what the parties brought to the negotiations in the column by RBC-Ukraine Deputy Editor-in-Chief Milan Lelich.
The following were used in preparation: the website of the State Department, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, statements published in the Telegram channel of the head of the Office of the President Andriy Yermak.
Read urgent and important news about Russia's war against Ukraine on the RBC-Ukraine channel in Telegram.