Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, became the focal point Tuesday as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met to discuss normalizing relations and negotiating a potential peace agreement for Ukraine.
Neither Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky nor representatives from the European Union were invited to the meeting. J.D. Vance, the U.S. Vice President, hinted at the Munich Conference on Saturday that European countries would not have a leading role in these discussions.
Lavrov stated on Monday that Europe lost its right to participate after the non-compliance of the Minsk agreements by Kiev, Berlin and Paris a decade ago.
Rubio's arrival in Riyadh followed a visit to Israel, where Benjamin Netanyahu supported Donald Trump's idea of evacuating Palestinians from Gaza.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov confirmed on Monday that Yuri Ushakov, Putin's advisor on international affairs, joined Lavrov in the Russian delegation. Rubio was accompanied by Steve Witkoff, Trump's envoy to the Middle East, and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz.
Zelensky, during an official visit to the United Arab Emirates, stated that Ukraine would not accept any outcomes from the Riyadh meeting and would seek explanations from Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman.
Prior to the Riyadh meeting, Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron spoke by phone for 30 minutes. Macron also contacted Zelensky, who reiterated that Ukraine would not accept any negotiations without its presence.