US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga attended the meeting in Jeddah – which Russia was not participating in – as President Donald Trump ramped up pressure on Ukraine to end the war that began with Russia’s 2022 assault.
The talks come just days after President Volodymyr Zelensky’s public dressing-down at the White House, after which the United States cut off military aid, intelligence sharing and access to satellite imagery.
Ukraine is hoping the offer of a partial ceasefire in the sky and at sea will persuade Washington to restore the assistance.
“We are ready to do everything to achieve peace,” Ukrainian presidency chief of staff Andriy Yermak told reporters as he entered Tuesday’s meeting at a luxury hotel.
Kyiv officials said the “largest drone attack in history,” in which hundreds of drones slammed into Moscow and other areas overnight, was intended to push Russian President Vladimir Putin to agree to the aerial and naval ceasefire.
“This is an additional signal to Putin that he should also be interested in a ceasefire in the air,” said Andriy Kovalenko, a national security council official responsible for countering disinformation.
Three people were killed in the attack, which both sides said was the biggest so far on Moscow. Russia’s army said it intercepted 337 drones around the country. (AFP)
