Top U.S. and Russian officials have finished their first talks on ending the war in Ukraine, with the Kremlin voicing new demands as Washington and Moscow agreed to move quickly to normalize their ties and begin negotiations around the nearly three-year conflict.
The more than four-hour meeting in Riyadh -- which was attended by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov -- is part of a major diplomatic push by the United States to bring the war to an end. The discussions were framed by U.S. officials as exploratory talks that could pave the way for a potential in-person meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Rubio told reporters after the February 18 meeting in the Saudi capital that the talks were "the first step of a long and difficult journey" over ending the war in Ukraine and that the U.S. and Russian delegations agreed on four principles during their discussions.
These comprise fully restoring their diplomatic missions in Washington and Moscow after years of sanctions and expulsions, appointing a high-level team to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine, exploring further "geopolitical and economic cooperation that could result from an end to the conflict in Ukraine," and ensuring that the U.S. and Russian delegations present in Riyadh will remain engaged in discussions moving forward.
Lavrov called the meeting "very useful" and said Moscow would aim to appoint a special envoy as soon as possible.
"I have every reason to believe that the American side understands our position," Lavrov said.
Russia's chief foreign policy adviser, Yury Ushakov, who was part of the country's delegation, added that the two sides briefly discussed the conditions needed for a Putin-Trump summit. However, he added that the decision to begin deeper talks with the United States about Ukraine would ultimately rest with Putin himself.
"It's useful for the Trump administration's senior national-security team to hear these Russian positions and they can take them back to the president," John Deni, a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, told RFE/RL. "It's still too early to know what the Russians might be willing to give up or hold onto."
Key Takeaways From Saudi Meeting
By Mike Eckel, RFE/RL senior international correspondent
(Diplomatic) Boots On The Ground. The two sides agreed to re-staff their diplomatic posts in Washington and Moscow. It's a diplomatic spat that predates the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, stretching into the first Trump administration (dozens expelled on both sides), and even the Obama administration, which also shuttered two diplomatic compounds in the States. Putting more diplomats on the ground is, by all accounts, fairly noncontroversial. For its part, the Kremlin signaled prior to Riyadh it wants those compounds back.
Give Peace A Chance. The delegations agreed to create a high-level team to focus specifically on the Ukraine conflict. But the devil is in the details: Is NATO membership off the table? European peacekeepers? More weapons for Kyiv? Fewer sanctions for Moscow? We won't get any hints of what's on the table for weeks. Something else to watch: a side comment made earlier by Putin in the Kremlin readout of his call with Trump, which referenced "root causes" of the Ukraine war. If it pops up again, it may augur bad news for Ukrainian independence or autonomy.
'Closer Relations And Economic Cooperation.' That can mean pretty much anything, but one bit of low-hanging fruit for closer relations is space cooperation. Russia and the United States for years largely succeeded in shielding their joint space work from politics. That's atrophied in recent years. Signing a new agreement between NASA and the Russian space agency, Roscosmos, would be an easy, noncontroversial move.
What Came From The Meetings?
The meeting appears to have laid the foundation for future talks between Moscow and Washington, with both Rubio and Lavrov saying each side will restore staffing at their respective embassies in Washington and Moscow to create missions to support Ukraine peace talks, bilateral relations, and cooperation more broadly.
In a statement, the U.S. State Department said delegations from both countries have agreed to "address irritants" in their ties with the goal of normalizing diplomatic relations after years of tensions.
Spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said both countries will explore "future cooperation" but cautioned an exact timeline still remains unclear, noting, "One phone call followed by one meeting is not sufficient to establish enduring peace."
She added the Riyadh talks are an early step in a longer process.
Lavrov said the two sides "practically agreed" that they need to resolve issues concerning the functioning of diplomatic missions.
On Ukraine, he said there was "a mutual desire" to find solutions and Russia will wait for the United States to appoint its representatives.
"After that, relevant consultations will begin and will be regular," he said.
The Russian foreign minister added the potential of any deployment of NATO troops to Ukraine -- which has been floated by some Western governments -- would be a "completely unacceptable" proposal for the Kremlin.
Separately, Russian officials said a long-term peace deal in Ukraine will not be possible without addressing a wider range of security concerns across Europe.
"A comprehensive long-term settlement is impossible without a comprehensive consideration of security issues on the continent," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on February 18.
Peskov also said Putin would be open to talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy "if necessary."
Putin had previously said he was unwilling to negotiate with Zelenskyy because his rule is "illegitimate," in part because Ukraine has not held elections since Russia launched its full-scale invasion nearly three years ago.
Speaking in Moscow, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow wants NATO to disavow its 2008 promise to one day give Ukraine membership of the military alliance, and for Kyiv to agree to neutrality.
What Happens Next?
Both sides all agreed to appoint envoys and continue talks moving forward. Rubio also hinted at a role for the EU further down the line, saying that "there are other parties that have sanctions, the European Union is going to have to be at the table at some point, because they have sanctions as well that have been imposed."
Jana Puglierin, a senior fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said both Kyiv and its European allies have watched anxiously from the sidelines as U.S. and Russian officials met in Riyadh and worries are high in Ukraine and European capitals that Trump could cut a hasty deal with Moscow that ignores their security interests.
She says European leaders are currently grappling with multiple "turning points" set off by Russia launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 as well as recent comments by top U.S. officials suggesting Europe will need to play a larger part in security issues.
"February 2022 destroyed our faith in a collective security order with Russia and showed us the dark side of our fundamental dependence on Russia and China in critical areas," she said. "February 2025 shows us that the Americans no longer feel responsible for European security -- and that their interests are fundamentally different from ours."
European leaders held emergency talks in Paris on February 17 to discuss the war in Ukraine and European security matters but were unable to reach any agreement.
Following the meeting in Saudi Arabia, U.S. national-security adviser Michael Waltz said any postwar peace guarantee would have to be "European-led," echoing calls by U.S. officials for European allies to increase defense spending and praising Britain and France for "talking about contributing more forcefully to Ukraine's security."
Zeleneskyy has criticized the talks due to their lack of a Ukrainian representative and he called for "fair" peace talks about ending the war, arguing they should also involve the European Union, Turkey, and Britain.
The Atlantic Council's Deni said any potential settlement that can be reached is still likely far off and will require further discussions with Ukraine and European governments.
He added the meeting in Riyadh should be seen as the latest U.S. attempt to reset relations with Russia, following similar efforts by former President George W. Bush in 2001 and former President Barack Obama in 2009. Each of those diplomatic pushes ended with strained ties and new geopolitical flashpoints in Georgia and Ukraine.
"At a certain point you need to speak to your adversary and diplomacy needs to be in the U.S. toolbox," Deni said. "Reset efforts make sense, but in the past they've ended in disappointment."
