Second round of Saudi Arabia talks with US not happening on Feb. 26, Russia says
Russia's foreign ministry has said none of its representatives are scheduled to meet their U.S. counterparts in Saudi Arabia on Feb. 25, Russian state media RIA Novosti reported.
The statement comes after Euronews reported on Feb. 22 that U.S. President Donald Trump had announced a second round of talks on how to end the war in Ukraine.
The first round of talks on Feb. 18 in Saudi Arabia marked the first direct negotiations between the U.S. and Russia since Moscow's full-scale invasion began, with Russia's delegation, led by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, sitting down with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other officials.
Ukraine was not invited to participate.
Following the initial meeting, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio outlined three main objectives both sides had agreed to pursue.
These include restoring embassy staff in Washington and Moscow, creating a high-level team to facilitate Ukraine peace talks, and exploring ways to strengthen economic cooperation between the two countries.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that preparations are underway for a potential face-to-face meeting between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Speaking to Russian state media, Ryabkov said such a summit could cover a broad range of global issues beyond the war in Ukraine. He emphasized the need to "move toward normalizing relations" and address "the most acute and potentially very, very dangerous situations, of which there are many, Ukraine among them."
Ryabkov claimed that plans for the summit remain in the early stages and would require "the most intensive preparatory work" to materialize. He added that U.S. and Russian envoys may hold another meeting within the next two weeks to prepare for further high-level discussions.
President Volodymyr Zelensky rejected any potential outcome from the talks, stressing that Kyiv was not included in the discussions. European allies have also voiced concerns over being sidelined in the negotiations, raising further doubts about the legitimacy of the ongoing diplomatic efforts.
