U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio sits next to U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff during a meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Saudi National Security Advisor Mosaad bin Mohammad Al-Aiban, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov, at Diriyah Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, February 18, 2025 / REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/Pool

 U.S. President Donald Trump's administration said on Feb. 18 it agreed to hold more talks with Russia on ending the war in Ukraine after an initial meeting that excluded Kyiv, a departure from Washington's previous approach that rallied U.S. allies to isolate Russian President Vladimir Putin.

As the 4-1/2-hour meeting in the Saudi capital was under way, Russia hardened its demands, notably insisting it would not tolerate the NATO alliance granting membership for Kyiv.

It was the first time U.S. and Russian officials have sat down together to discuss ways to halt the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War Two. Ukraine has said it will not accept any deal imposed without its consent, and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz reiterated "there must be no decision over the heads of Ukraine."

Even before the talks took place, some European politicians accused Trump's administration of handing free concessions to Moscow last week by ruling out NATO membership for Ukraine and saying it was an illusion for Kyiv to believe it could win back the 20 percent of its territory now under Russian control.

U.S. National Security Adviser Mike Waltz told reporters in Riyadh that the war must come to a permanent end, and this would involve negotiations over territory.

"Just a practical reality is that there is going to be some discussion of territory and there's going to be discussion of security guarantees," he said.

High-level teams would begin talks on ending the conflict and would separately work to restore the countries' respective diplomatic missions in Washington and Moscow to ease the talks going forward, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.

Rubio said he came away from the initial talks convinced that Russia was "willing to begin to engage in a serious process" but that reaching peace would involve concessions from all sides.

Addressing Ukrainian and European concerns, Rubio said no one was being sidelined, the European Union needed to be involved at some point, and any solution must be acceptable to all parties.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had postponed a visit to Saudi Arabia planned for Feb.19 until next month. Sources familiar with the matter said the decision was made to avoid giving "legitimacy" to the U.S.-Russia talks.

Kyiv says talks on how to end the war should not be held behind Ukraine's back.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters in Moscow it was "not enough" for NATO not to admit Ukraine as a member. She said the alliance must go further by disavowing a promise it made at a summit in Bucharest in 2008 that Kyiv would join at a future, unspecified date.

"Otherwise, this problem will continue to poison the atmosphere on the European continent," she said.

Zelenskyy has consistently demanded NATO membership as the only way to guarantee Kyiv's sovereignty and independence from its nuclear-armed neighbour.

Ukraine agreed to give up its Soviet-era nuclear weapons in 1994 in exchange for assurances of independence and sovereignty within its existing borders from Russia, the U.S. and Britain.

RUSSIA RAISES NEW DEMANDS BEFORE NEGOTIATION WITH US BEGINS

As European countries discuss the possibility of contributing peacekeepers to back any Ukraine peace deal, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in Riyadh that Moscow would not accept deployment of NATO troops there, whatever flag they were operating under.

"Of course, this is unacceptable to us," he said.

The comments by Lavrov and Zakharova signalled that Russia will keep pressing for further concessions in the negotiations. The opening encounter on Feb. 18 saw Lavrov and Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov - two veterans who have spent a combined 34 years in their current roles - negotiate with three Trump administration officials in their first month on the job.

Russia did not mention offering any concessions and U.S. officials did not claim to have scored any in Feb. 18's meeting, leading observers to doubt whether the talks would turn into serious peace negotiations.

"So far I have seen zero evidence that Putin is willing to give one inch in order to negotiate a peace deal," Michael McFaul, who served as U.S. ambassador to Russia under President Barack Obama, wrote on X. "All I see instead are ideas floated by the U.S. of concessions that Ukraine, NATO, and U.S. are supposed to make."

Both sides said no date had been set for a meeting between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, which both men say they want.

But the fast-moving diplomacy, beginning with a Putin-Trump phone call only six days ago, has triggered alarm in Ukraine and European capitals that the two leaders could cut a quick deal that ignores their security interests, rewards Moscow for its invasion and leaves Putin free to threaten Ukraine or other countries in the future.

Lavrov said there was "high interest" in lifting economic barriers between the two countries, after the U.S. and other Western countries imposed waves of sanctions on Moscow over the war, seeking to isolate Putin.

Rubio said European countries have also imposed sanctions so would have to be involved in talks on lifting the measures.

But if the conflict ultimately ended, he added, it would "unlock" opportunities for U.S.-Russian cooperation, including "some pretty unique, potentially historic economic partnerships."