Top Trump administration officials to head to Saudi Arabia for Russia-Ukraine peace talks
NBC6 days ago
Rubio in Riyadh to Set Up US-Russia Ukraine Peace Talks
Above: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrives at the Munich Security Conference on Feb. 15, 2025. Image copyright: Sean Gallup/Staff/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Facts
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday arrived in Saudi Arabia ahead of anticipated high-level talks with Russian officials aimed at ending the nearly three-year war in Ukraine following a recent phone conversation between US Pres. Donald Trump and Russian Pres. Vladimir Putin.
Rubio's delegation, including National Security Advisor Michael Waltz and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, will meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin's advisor Yuri Ushakov in Riyadh on Tuesday to discuss potential peace negotiations and lay the groundwork for a Trump-Putin summit.
The talks represent a significant departure from previous US policy toward Russia, marking the first high-level in-person discussions between Russian and US officials in years.
The Spin
Narrative A
Direct US-Russia dialogue highlights a pragmatic approach to ending a costly war that's gone on too long, with European nations doing nothing to stop it. Trump, who promised during the campaign to end this war, is uniquely positioned to broker peace through his relationship with Putin.
Narrative B
The exclusion of Ukraine and other European allies from initial talks undermines Ukrainian sovereignty. This approach risks rewarding Russian aggression with concessions Ukraine doesn't agree to and potentially weakens Europe's security architecture, as well as the US-European defense partnership.