Two U.S. officials have confirmed that Ukraine was not invited to the negotiations in Saudi Arabia, but stated that the U.S. intends to hold a bilateral meeting with Russia, followed by a bilateral meeting with Ukraine, and then conduct joint negotiations.
"All of this indicates that we are engaging with both [countries] with equal weight," said one official. He emphasized that the U.S. is working to "put an end to the killings and move towards a lasting peace."
The first negotiations with the Russian Federation, set to take place in Saudi Arabia, will be attended by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, and Special Representative for the Middle East Steve Vitkoff, sources said.
It was noted that the U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine and Russia, Keith Kellogg, defended the prospect of engaging with the illegitimate President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, during a security conference in Munich, stressing the need to "talk to adversaries."