President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, working to restore his strained relationship with america and safe a good deal to finish his nation’s conflict with Russia, was scheduled to satisfy on Monday with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Saudi Arabia.
The assembly between Mr. Zelensky and Prince Mohammed, the de facto Saudi chief, who has sought to take a central function on the world’s diplomatic stage, comes forward of talks deliberate for Tuesday between Ukrainian and U.S. officers within the oil-rich Gulf state.
The crown prince, as soon as shunned internationally due to accusations of human rights abuses that he has denied, has positioned his nation as a intermediary in efforts to finish the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Final yr, Saudi Arabia performed a pivotal function in a posh U.S.-Russia prisoner swap, and President Trump has advised it could possibly be the positioning of a attainable assembly between him and President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia.
Final month, Mr. Zelensky postponed a visit to Saudi Arabia after it hosted an extraordinary assembly of the U.S. secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and his Russian counterpart, Sergey V. Lavrov, through which the 2 sides sought to reset their relationship and mentioned the conflict in Ukraine, with out Mr. Zelensky.
However on Saturday, Mr. Zelensky stated on social media that he would go to Saudi Arabia, declaring that he was “decided to do the whole lot to finish this conflict with a simply and lasting peace.”
“Ukraine has been looking for peace from the very first second of this conflict,” he wrote of the full-scale battle, which started with Russia’s invasion three years in the past. “Reasonable proposals are on the desk. The secret’s to maneuver rapidly and successfully.”
Mr. Zelensky is underneath intense strain from the Trump administration to conform to a peace deal, and he has appeared to recalibrate his message after Mr. Trump and Vice President JD Vance angrily assailed him 10 days in the past within the Oval Workplace over what they described as a scarcity of gratitude for U.S. help.
Mr. Trump has repeatedly stated that Mr. Zelensky doesn’t “have the playing cards” given Russia’s navy energy, and has all however demanded that Ukraine settle for diplomatic phrases set by america for a decision of the conflict. Nonetheless, there are indicators that Ukraine’s place on the battlefield is bettering: Ukrainian troops have in current months stalled a Russian offensive and in some locations received again small patches of land.
Steve Witkoff, the Trump administration’s particular envoy to the Center East, has stated that Mr. Zelensky’s deferential posture after the blowup within the White Home has improved Ukraine’s standing with American officers. Nonetheless, the U.S. has paused navy help for Ukraine.
Mr. Zelensky wrote on Saturday that he was “absolutely dedicated to constructive dialogue” and that he hoped to “focus on and agree on the required choices and steps” throughout his go to to Saudi Arabia. Mr. Rubio will probably be within the seaside Saudi metropolis of Jeddah for talks with Ukrainian officers from Monday via Wednesday, in line with the U.S. State Division, and was anticipated to satisfy with Prince Mohammed after arriving on Monday night.
Mr. Trump’s place on Russia and Ukraine has generally been onerous to pin down. On Friday, he stated on social media that he was contemplating vital sanctions on Russia to assist power a peace deal on Ukraine. He demanded that the 2 international locations “get to the desk proper now, earlier than it’s too late.”
Hours later, he informed reporters on the White Home that he felt talks with Russia have been going nicely and that he was “discovering it harder, frankly, to cope with Ukraine.”
