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The United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, arrived this Monday in Saudi Arabia to engage in discussions with Russian officials aimed at finding a diplomatic solution to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, a conflict that began in 2014 and has officially resulted in over 200,000 deaths, although other sources suggest the number may be double that.
Negotiations follow a recent phone conversation between U.S. President, Donald Trump, and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, during which the U.S. leader instructed his senior officials to start peace talks. Although more than the promised "24 hours" to end the conflict have already passed, this initiative corresponds to one of Trump's key promises during his presidential campaign.
In addition to Rubio, it is expected that the National Security Advisor to Trump, Mike Waltz, and the White House envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, will participate in the meetings. The names of the Russian officials who will attend have not yet been confirmed, although the newspaper Kommersant reported that the meetings are scheduled for this Tuesday in Riyadh.
Rubio declared on Sunday that the coming weeks will be crucial in assessing whether Putin is genuinely interested in achieving peace. According to Reuters, Saudi Arabia has played a vital role in the rapprochement between Washington and Moscow, facilitating a prisoner exchange last week.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelenski, is in the region after arriving in the United Arab Emirates. Although he has expressed his intention to visit Saudi Arabia and Turkey, no specific dates have been announced.
Zelensky clarified that he does not plan to meet with Russian or American representatives, and Ukraine will not participate in the talks organized in Riyadh.
Conversations about Gaza
In addition to the conflict in Ukraine, Rubio will meet with the Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman (MbS), to discuss the situation in the Gaza Strip.
Washington has proposed the possibility of resettling Palestinians in other Arab countries, with the U.S. leading a reconstruction plan. However, this proposal has been rejected by Saudi Arabia and other Arab nations, which are advocating for a counterproposal based on a reconstruction fund financed by Gulf countries and the exclusion of Hamas from any future solution.
Rubio also visited Israel and met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, reaffirming the support of the U.S. for Israel in its confrontation with Iran.
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