Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky at the EU headquarters in Brussels on March 6, 2025. NICOLAS TUCAT/Getty Images
Ukraine hopes that talks with U.S. officials in Saudi Arabia will repair ties between Washington and Kyiv following last month's White House spat between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky.
The Trump team wants to use Tuesday's meeting with a Ukrainian delegation in Jeddah to see if Ukraine is willing to make concessions to Russia to end the war started by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Reuters reported, citing unnamed American sources.
Kyiv will also hope for a breakthrough on the U.S. intelligence and military assistance that Washington has frozen, a Ukrainian MP has told Newsweek.
Newsweek has contacted the U.S. State Department and the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry for comment.
Why It Matters
There has been a deterioration in U.S.-Ukraine ties after the disagreement between Zelensky, Trump and Vice President JD Vance last month in which the White House leader accused his Ukrainian counterpart of risking "World War III."
Washington's freezing of aid and intelligence for Ukraine last week has prompted concern that Putin has been handed an advantage, and both the U.S. and Kyiv will want to emerge from Tuesday's talks with agreements they can present as diplomatic wins.
What To Know
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has arrived in Jeddah for Tuesday's bilateral talks with Ukrainian officials, who will be led by Andriy Yermak, a top Zelensky aide.
Ahead of the talks, Zelensky met with the Saudi kingdom's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Sunday.
Trump has expressed optimism about the talks, telling reporters on Air Force One that there would be progress. This was a sentiment echoed by Zelensky in his nightly address Sunday, in which he said he hoped there would be results.
However, Washington wants to see if Tuesday's meeting shows Kyiv is ready to make material concessions to Russia to end the war and improve ties with the Trump administration, Reuters reported citing unnamed officials.
Officials told the U.K. newspaper Financial Times that Ukraine will try to persuade the U.S. to resume intelligence and military support by convincing Trump that Zelensky wants a swift end to the war.
Kyiv would propose a partial ceasefire with Russia for long-range drone and missile strikes and combat operations in the Black Sea if Washington reverses its decision to freeze intelligence sharing and weaponry supplies, the newspaper reported.
Oleksiy Goncharenko, a Ukrainian MP and member of the Ukrainian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), told Newsweek Monday that the meeting's primary aim would be to improve ties between Washington and Kyiv.
Goncharenko added there is hope of a breakthrough in intelligence-sharing between the countries, but he was more doubtful of any agreement over the U.S. freezing military aid.
Russian politics expert Peter Rutland told Newsweek that the war desperately needs third-party mediation to break the stalemate. Saudi Arabia has the trust of both the U.S. and Russia, as well as leverage over Moscow given its role in setting the global oil price.
However, it was unclear whether Saudi Arabia knows enough about the Ukraine conflict, or cares enough, to broker a workable peace deal, Rutland said.
The Trump administration's freezing of intelligence is feared to have contributed to Russian gains in the Kursk region where Ukraine staged an incursion in August 2024, although a clear link between the two has not been established.
Washington's pausing of military aid for Ukraine has raised concerns about Kyiv's ability to defend itself from Russia on the battlefield and from the air.
Nichita Gurcov, senior analyst for Europe & Central Asia with ACLED (Armed Conflict Location & Event Data), told Newsweek the suspension of U.S. military aid and American funding for initiatives aiming to restore Ukraine's power grid may severely undermine Kyiv's reconstruction efforts.
The move will also hurt Ukraine's air defense capabilities, which have protected and maintained the functioning of the country's energy system from Russian attacks, Gurcov added.
But Ukraine's European allies say Kyiv can only agree to a deal from a position of strength. Zelensky has said Putin does not want peace and would attack other European countries if its invasion of Ukraine were to end in a clear defeat.
The International Crisis Group said last week there is "next to no chance" the U.S. will offer Kyiv security guarantees. So, Ukraine must stop pushing for them and seek a consensus with the U.S. on another path to assure Kyiv's long-term security.
NBC reported that a signed agreement on the supply of minerals between Washington and Kyiv may not be enough for Trump to resume assistance and intelligence sharing.
The U.S. president also wants Zelensky to consider elections, which have been suspended due to wartime martial law, and possibly to step down as leader, the outlet reported, citing unnamed officials.
What People Are Saying
An unnamed U.S. official cited by Reuters said: "We want to see if the Ukrainians are interested not just in peace, but in a realistic peace … If they are only interested in 2014 or 2022 borders, that tells you something."
Peter Rutland, professor of government at Wesleyan University, said: "The Russia-Ukraine war desperately needs third-party mediation to break the stalemate, which is damaging to both sides."
Oleksiy Goncharenko, a Ukrainian MP, said: "The main objective (is) to restore relationships."
What Happens Next
So far, Trump's approach with Ukraine appears more conciliatory toward Putin, although the president has threatened new sanctions against Russia over its attacks on Ukrainian cities.
If Ukraine and the U.S. can strike a deal, that could accelerate Trump's push for negotiations. However, Kyiv's European allies, which are not party to the Saudi talks, remain skeptical and have agreed to boost the continent's defenses in face of the security threat Russia poses.
Related Articles
Russia Responds to Reports of New Meeting With Trump Allies in Saudi Arabia
Poland's Prime Minister Aims Dig at Elon Musk, Rubio in Starlink Dispute
Ukrainian Refugee Asks Donald Trump for Green Card
Ukraine Faces F-16 Dilemma
2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
This story was originally published March 10, 2025 at 10:36 AM.