Talks conclude in Saudi Arabia HIGHLIGHTS: Russia says there is ‘mutual desire’ to start Ukraine peace talks
Russia Ukraine War Live: Notably absent from the talks, Ukraine remains a focal point as global powers like China express hopes for inclusive peace negotiations involving all stakeholders.
Russia Ukraine War Live: Saudi becomes a dealmaker as it is hosting breakthrough US-Russia talks with the two sides expected to discuss ways to end the conflict in Ukraine and restore American-Russian relations. Top Russian and US officials met on Tuesday in Riyadh. The two parties will talk about measures to resolve the Ukrainian issue and mend US-Russian ties.
Notably, Ukraine is not part of the talks. It says that no peace agreement can be reached on its behalf.
Russia Ukraine War Live Updates:
Russia announced that Sergei Lavrov, the foreign minister, would meet with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other senior US officials to discuss stopping the war in Ukraine and re-establishing "the whole complex" of relations between the two countries.
China weighed in on the talks ahead of the meeting. It said that it hoped "all parties and stakeholders can participate" in talks over the war in Ukraine. On being asked about the discussions, foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said China was "happy to see all efforts towards peace", adding: "At the same time, we hope that all parties and stakeholders can participate in the peace talks in due course."