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Delegations from the United States and Ukraine have engaged in discussions in Saudi Arabia as part of ongoing diplomatic efforts to negotiate a resolution to the Russia-Ukraine war, according to a media report.
Focus on Security and Infrastructure Protection
Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov confirmed the talks on Sunday, highlighting that discussions were centered around protecting energy infrastructure and other critical sites amid continued hostilities. The negotiations are taking place under the mediation of the administration of US President Donald Trump, as efforts persist to establish a framework for peace.
The timing of these discussions is significant, coming just ahead of scheduled meetings between Russian and Ukrainian representatives on Monday. Umerov reiterated Ukraine’s unwavering commitment to achieving a “just peace” while reinforcing national security.
“We are implementing the President of Ukraine’s directive to bring a just peace closer and to strengthen security,” he wrote on X.
We’ve started the meeting with the American team in Riyadh. We are implementing the President of Ukraine’s directive to bring a just peace closer and to strengthen security. The agenda includes proposals to protect energy facilities and critical infrastructure. Today, we’re…
— Rustem Umerov (@rustem_umerov) March 23, 2025
US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff expressed cautious optimism regarding the talks, telling Fox News that he believed Russian President Vladimir Putin was open to peace. “I just don’t see that he wants to take all of Europe,” Witkoff remarked. While the US and Russian delegations are set to meet separately in Riyadh, the broader discussions reflect ongoing efforts to establish common ground amid persistent hostilities.
Intensified Attacks Heighten Urgency
As diplomatic engagements continue, the situation on the ground in Ukraine remains dire. Overnight Russian drone strikes resulted in at least seven fatalities, prompting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to call on Western allies to increase pressure on Moscow to halt its assaults.
In Kyiv, a drone attack led to the deaths of three individuals, including a five-year-old child, while injuring ten others, according to the city’s military administration. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported significant structural damage across multiple districts, with emergency services scrambling to contain fires and destruction. Meanwhile, in the eastern Donetsk region, four additional fatalities were reported, including three civilians killed in a strike on the front-line town of Dobropillya.
Ukraine’s Air Force reported that Russia had launched 147 drones overnight, targeting multiple regions. Of these, 97 drones were intercepted, while 25 failed to reach their targets. The scale of the strikes underscored Zelenskyy’s concerns over the increasing frequency of Russian attacks. He noted that “more than 1,580 guided aerial bombs, almost 1,100 strike drones, and 15 missiles of various types” had been deployed against Ukraine in a single week. Calling for “new solutions,” Zelenskyy urged for stronger international intervention to put an end to the conflict, as reported by a media report.
In response, Russia’s Ministry of Defence stated that its forces had “destroyed and intercepted” 59 Ukrainian drones overnight, primarily in the regions of Rostov and Astrakhan.
Ceasefire Talks and Stalemates
Meanwhile, President Trump suggested that de-escalation efforts were progressing but remained complex. Speaking in an interview aboard Air Force One, he emphasized that “rational discussions” and maintaining strong relationships with both Putin and Zelenskyy were essential to achieving peace.
Trump recently held separate discussions with both leaders in an attempt to broker a ceasefire. While these talks did not lead to a comprehensive 30-day truce, Putin agreed to suspend attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure for the period—a condition Zelenskyy accepted. However, both sides have since accused each other of targeting energy facilities, further complicating peace efforts.
The Kremlin has tempered expectations of an imminent resolution, stressing that negotiations remain in their early stages. “We are only at the beginning of this path,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated on Russian state television, adding that many challenging discussions lay ahead.
A key point of interest for Russia in its talks with the US involves revisiting the 2022 grain deal, which had allowed safe passage for Ukrainian agricultural exports through the Black Sea. Moscow withdrew from the agreement in 2023, citing Western failures to ease sanctions on Russian agricultural and fertilizer exports, as per a media report.
Russian delegation leader Senator Grigory Karasin signaled cautious optimism for the upcoming discussions, though he acknowledged significant hurdles. Speaking to the military-affiliated Zvezda TV channel, Karasin stated that he and fellow negotiator Sergey Beseda of the Federal Security Service (FSB) were approaching the discussions with a “combative and constructive” stance. “We are going with the mood to fight for the solution of at least one issue,” Karasin said.
(With Inputs from ANI)
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