Riyadh, March 24, 2025 – The Europe Today: U.S. and Russian officials convened in Saudi Arabia on Monday to advance discussions on a broad ceasefire in Ukraine, with Washington seeking to establish a separate maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea before finalizing a wider agreement, according to media reports.
A source familiar with the negotiations indicated that the U.S. delegation is led by Andrew Peek, Senior Director at the White House National Security Council, and Michael Anton, a senior official from the State Department. The primary objective of the talks, as stated by the White House, is to secure a maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea to ensure the uninterrupted movement of shipping, despite the region having seen limited military activity in recent months.
Russia is represented by Grigory Karasin, chair of the Russian Federation Council’s Foreign Affairs Committee and a former diplomat, alongside Sergei Beseda, an adviser to the director of the Federal Security Service (FSB).
Former U.S. President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly called for an end to the war in Ukraine, has expressed general satisfaction with the progress of the talks and commended Russian President Vladimir Putin’s engagement in the process. On Saturday, Trump stated that efforts to de-escalate the conflict were “somewhat under control.”
However, skepticism remains among key European powers regarding Moscow’s willingness to make substantial concessions. European officials caution that Putin’s conditions—Ukraine formally abandoning its NATO aspirations and withdrawing from four regions claimed and largely controlled by Russia—are unchanged from his initial demands when Russian forces launched the full-scale invasion in 2022.
The outcome of the talks remains uncertain, as both sides navigate complex geopolitical and security considerations in pursuit of a potential resolution to the ongoing conflict.
