WASHINGTON/RIYADH: US and Ukrainian officials were meeting in Saudi Arabia on Sunday for talks on a partial ceasefire in the war with Russia, with Washington hoping for “real progress” but the Kremlin warning of “difficult negotiations” and a long journey to peace.

US President Donald Trump is pushing for a rapid end to the three-year war and hopes talks in Riyadh, which will see US officials hold separate technical-level discussions with delegations from Ukraine and Russia could pave the way to a breakthrough.

Despite both sides proposing different plans for temporary ceasefires, attacks have continued unabated.

Originally scheduled to take place simultaneously to enable shuttle diplomacy — with the US going back and forth between the delegations — the talks on a partial truce are now taking place one after the other.

Washington hopes for ‘progress’ at Riyadh talks; Russia intends to discuss resumption of Black Sea grain initiative

The meeting between the Ukrainian team, led by defence minister Rustem Umerov and the Americans got underway in Riyadh on Sunday evening, Umerov said on Facebook. “The agenda includes proposals to protect energy facilities and critical infrastructure,” he said, adding the teams were “working through a number of complex technical issues.” Talks between the US and Russia were set for Monday.

Real progress

Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff voiced optimism that any agreement struck would pave the way to a “full-on” ceasefire.

“I think you’re going to see in Saudi Arabia on Monday some real progress, particularly as it affects a Black Sea ceasefire on ships between both countries. And from that you’ll naturally gravitate to a full-on shooting ceasefire,” he told Fox News.

Trump’s envoy said he does not see President Vladimir Putin wanting to invade beyond Ukraine. “I just don’t see that he wants to take all of Europe. I take him at his word in this sense, so, and I think the Europeans are beginning to come to that belief, too. But it sort of doesn’t matter. That’s an academic issue…. The agenda is, stop the killing, stop the carnage. Let’s end this thing,” he said.

But the Kremlin on Sunday downplayed expectations of a rapid resolution, saying talks were just beginning. “We are only at the beginning of this path,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian state TV.

He said there were many outstanding “questions” and “nuances” over how a potential ceasefire might be implemented.

President Putin had already rejected a joint US-Ukrainian call for a full and immediate 30-day pause, proposing instead a halt in attacks only on energy facilities.

“There are difficult negotiations ahead,” Peskov said in the interview, published on social media.

Black Sea deal

Peskov said the “main” focus in its talks with the United States would be a possible resumption of a 2022 Black Sea grain deal that ensured safe navigation for Ukrainian farm exports via the Black Sea.

“On Monday, we mainly intend to discuss President Putin’s agreement to resume the so-called Black Sea initiative, and our negotiators will be ready to discuss the nuances around this problem,” Peskov said.

Accusing the West of failing to uphold its commitments to ease sanctions on Russia’s own exports of farm produce and fertilisers, Moscow pulled out of the deal — brokered by Turkiye and the United Nations — in 2023.

A senior Ukrainian official had recently said that Kyiv would propose a broader ceasefire, covering attacks on energy facilities, infrastructure and naval strikes.

However, both sides continued drone attacks on the eve of the negotiations.

While Ukrainian officials said a Russian drone attack killed three civilians in Kyiv, adding that Russia launched 147 drones at the country in the latest barrage, Kremlin said it had repelled nearly 60 Ukrainian drones overnight.

As Moscow heads into the Saudi talks amid a rapprochement with Washington under Trump, President Zelensky wants Ukraine’s allies to put fresh pressure on Russia. “New decisions and new pressure on Moscow are needed to bring an end to these strikes and this war,” he posted on social media on Sunday.

However, Peskov said the “potential for mutually beneficial cooperation in a wide variety of spheres between our countries cannot be overstated. We may disagree on some things but that does not mean we should deprive ourselves of mutual benefit,” he added.

Published in Dawn, March 24th, 2025