Ukraine-US talks start in Riyadh, Russia-US meeting to follow

Daryna Krasnolutska, Bloomberg News on Mar 23, 2025

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Talks in Riyadh between Ukrainian and U.S. officials, part of an effort to end Russia’s three-year invasion of its neighbor, started on Sunday afternoon, Ukraine’s defense minister said.

The discussions are expected to be followed on Monday by a meeting between the U.S. and Russia. Moscow’s delegation has arrived in Riyadh, Tass reported, citing team member Grigory Karasin, chairman of the Federation Council’s committee on International Affairs.

“We are implementing the president of Ukraine’s directive to bring a just peace closer and to strengthen security,” Ukrainian defense chief Rustem Umerov said on social media, adding that Sunday’s agenda includes proposals to protect energy facilities and critical infrastructure.

“Today, we’re working through a number of complex technical issues — our delegation includes energy experts as well as military representatives from the naval and air components,” Umerov said.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday said that special emphasis on preparation for the meeting took place during a gathering of his military cabinet in Kharkiv.

Umerov attended that meeting, along with Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander in chief of Ukraine’s armed forces, Andrii Hnatov, the forces’ chief of general staff, and top Zelenskyy aides.

Mike Waltz, U.S. national security adviser, said the upcoming talks among “technical teams” would focus on a potential Black Sea maritime ceasefire. He suggested that would lead into discussions about “the line of control, which is the actual front lines” of the conflict, which started when Kremlin forces invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

“That gets into the details of verification mechanisms, peace-keeping, freezing the lines where they are,” Waltz said Sunday on CBS’s "Face the Nation." “And then, of course, the broader and permanent peace” including security guarantees for Ukraine.

It’s unclear how far discussions will advance in Riyadh, whether more meetings will be scheduled, or what concessions Russia is prepared to offer.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian state TV that negotiators from Moscow will be ready to discuss nuances of resumption of the Black Sea initiative in Riyadh, without elaborating.

As of 2024 Russia occupied an estimated 20% of Ukraine in the nation’s east and southeast, including Crimea, with about 3 million Ukrainians estimated to be living under Russian occupation with millions more displaced and many others — including children — deported to Russia.

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(With assistance from Tony Czuczka.)

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