Closed talks between Russia and the United States take place in Saudi Arabia: details of the meeting
24 March 11:25
on March 24, 2025, negotiations between the Russian and American delegations began in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. The main topic of the meeting was the settlement of the war waged by the aggressor country Russia against Ukraine. The meeting is being held behind closed doors. This was reported by "Komersant Ukrainian" with reference to Russian media.
Details of the talks between Russia and the United States
The talks are taking place at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel.
Security guards in cars are on duty throughout the hotel. Entrance to the hotel building is strictly prohibited.
Not only is photography and video recording prohibited, but also just being on the hotel grounds, and everyone is politely asked to leave.
“Yes, Saudi Arabia’s State Security Service is asking journalists and other people to leave the Ritz-Carlton Hotel,”
the agencyreports.
Who is involved in the negotiations?
The Russian side is represented by Senator Grigory Karasin and FSB Director’s Advisor Sergei Beseda.
The United States is represented at the meeting by Michael Anthon, Director of Political Planning at the State Department, as well as assistants to Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz.
The talks are between the main participants of the previous conversations, but at the level of technical teams. On Sunday, the Ukrainian side was represented by the military, diplomats, and representatives of the Ministry of Energy.
Main goals of the talks
According to preliminary data, the Black Sea Initiative will be the key topic of discussion. However, the Kremlin has admitted the possibility of discussing other aspects of the Ukrainian settlement.
According to Reuters, during the talks on Monday, the US delegation will seek to make progress on a ceasefire in the Black Sea and a broader cessation of violence in the war in Ukraine.
Bloomberg’s sources say the US administration is seeking a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine before Easter, which is celebrated by both Orthodox and Catholics this year on April 20. However, the White House does not rule out that the deadline will have to be adjusted due to the many disagreements between the parties to the conflict.
According to the agency’s sources, a face-to-face meeting between the presidents of Russia and the United States is possible only after a comprehensive peace agreement is reached, and this is “unlikely before mid-April.”
This is not the first attempt by the American and Russian sides to find common ground on ending Russia’s war against Ukraine. Earlier, negotiations were held in Saudi Arabia to discuss a partial ceasefire. Later, U.S. President Donald Trump had a telephone conversation with Vladimir Putin, where these issues were also raised.
At the same time, no direct talks between the representatives of Russia and Ukraine are planned during this visit
Details of the talks between Ukraine and the United States
The day before, representatives of Washington met with a Ukrainian delegation, which included Deputy Chief of Staff of Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s office Pavlo Palisa and Inspector General of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Anatoliy Bargilevych.
Ukraine’s Defense Minister Rustem Umerov noted that the talks were “constructive and meaningful.” One of the topics discussed was the situation in the energy sector, which is of great importance for Ukraine’s security.
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US-Russia talks
on February 18, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian Assistant Prime Minister Yuri Ushakov met in Saudi Arabia with an American delegation, represented by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Advisor Mike Volz, and Special Envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff.
After the talks, the US State Department reported that the delegations agreed to “eliminate irritants” in bilateral relations and continue to work on preparing talks on Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The two sides also agreed to appoint high-level groups for further talks on Ukraine.
Jackie Heinrich, a Fox News correspondent at the White House, reported that the United States and Russia discussed a three-stage peace plan for Ukraine, which consists of the following stages
- A ceasefire.
- Holding elections in Ukraine.
- Conclusion of a peace agreement.
on February 27, negotiations between the Americans and Russians continued in Istanbul. According to the Russian side, they discussed the normalization of diplomatic relations. The Kremlin also allegedly demanded the return of 6 properties that had been seized from Russians in the United States in 2016-2018, and also proposed to resume air travel.
on March 13, Putin met in Moscow with Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff. The parties have not yet made any statements about the results of this meeting, except for the words of Trump’s national security adviser Mike Volz that there are grounds for cautious optimism.
Trump’s proposals to Putin
According to inaccurate information from former US Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul(he used the word “allegedly”), Trump offered Putin (McFaul’s wording is retained)
- ukrainian territory;
- ukraine’s non-membership in NATO;
- no American soldiers in Ukraine;
- withdrawal of American soldiers from Europe, including from frontline countries;
- easing of sanctions.
According to McFaul, Putin has not offered anything yet.
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