US-Russia talks conclude in Saudi Arabia, most high-level meeting since 2023: What to know
The US State Department said one purpose of the talks was to “reestablish” bilateral relations with Russia as Saudi Arabia seeks to mediate between the two.
The United States and Russia agreed on Tuesday to work toward ending the war in Ukraine but provided no clear roadmap, following a high-level meeting in Saudi Arabia—the first foreign ministerial encounter between Washington and Moscow since 2023.
Discussions between the two countries lasted more than four hours and were led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and several other high-ranking officials.
Rubio and Lavrov held talks in Riyadh as a follow-up to the phone call between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin last week. Rubio was joined by US national security adviser Mike Waltz and special envoy Steve Witkoff, while Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov and CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund Kirill Dmitriev were there with Lavrov. Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan and Musaed bin Mohammed Al-Aiban, the kingdom's minister of state and national security adviser, attended, per statements from the countries.
The discussions were held in an effort to “reestablish the bilateral relationship,” the US State Department said in a readout, adding that the following points were agreed upon:
