Russia and the US agreed Tuesday to start working toward ending the war in Ukraine and improving their diplomatic and economic ties, the two countries' top diplomats said after meeting in Riyadh.
The two sides stressed that their talks at the Diriyah Palace were very fruitful and were “a step forward.”
The meeting was attended by Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Rubio was accompanied by US national security adviser Mike Waltz and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, while Lavrov sat next to the Kremlin's foreign affairs adviser, Yuri Ushakov.
Also present was Saudi Minister of State, Member of the Cabinet and National Security Adviser Dr. Musaed bin Mohammed Al-Aiban.
In an interview with The Associated Press after the meeting, Rubio said the two sides agreed broadly to pursue three goals: to restore staffing at their respective embassies in Washington and Moscow, to create a high-level team to support Ukraine peace talks and to explore closer relations and economic cooperation.
He stressed, however, that the talks marked the beginning of a conversation, and more work needs to be done.
Lavrov echoed Rubio's remarks and told reporters that “the conversation was very useful.”
“We not only listened, but also heard each other,” he said.
Rubio said that ending the war in Ukraine could “unlock the door” for “incredible opportunities that exist to partner with the Russians geopolitically on issues of common interest and, frankly, economically on issues that hopefully will be good for the world and also improve our relations in the long term.”
He added that ending the conflict would require concessions from all sides and that Europe would play a part — noting that they have also imposed sanctions on Russia. He said Washington “is not going to predetermine" would those concessions would be.
Tuesday's meeting was meant to pave the way for a summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. After the talks ended, Ushakov and Waltz said no date has been set yet for that summit.
Ushakov told Russian television that a meeting was “unlikely” to take place next week, while Waltz said he thought it could be arranged in the coming weeks.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Lavrov mentioned the same three goals as Rubio and said that Washington and Moscow agreed to appoint representatives to carry out “regular consultations” on Ukraine.
“I have reason to believe that the American side has started to better understand our position” the Russian foreign minister said.
Witkoff said the meeting was “positive, upbeat, constructive. Everybody was there to get to the right outcome.”
