March 27, 2025 – US and Ukrainian officials convened in Saudi Arabia on Sunday for discussions on a partial ceasefire in the ongoing conflict with Russia, with Washington aiming for "real progress," while the Kremlin cautioned that negotiations would be challenging and peace remained a long way off.
US President Donald Trump is pushing for a swift resolution to the three-year war, hoping that the talks in Riyadh—where US officials are engaging in separate technical-level discussions with delegations from Ukraine and Russia—could lead to a breakthrough.
Despite both sides proposing different temporary ceasefire plans, hostilities have persisted. A Russian strike on Kyiv claimed three civilian lives overnight, while Ukrainian drone attacks resulted in two fatalities in Russia, officials reported on Sunday.
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Initially planned as simultaneous meetings to facilitate shuttle diplomacy—allowing the US to mediate between the delegations—the negotiations are now being held sequentially.
The Ukrainian delegation, led by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, met with US officials in Riyadh on Sunday evening, Umerov confirmed on Facebook.
"The agenda includes proposals to protect energy infrastructure and critical facilities," he stated, adding that the teams were addressing multiple complex technical challenges.
Talks between the US and Russia are scheduled for Monday.
Trump's envoy, Steve Witkoff, expressed optimism that any agreement reached could eventually lead to a "full-on" ceasefire.
"I think you’re going to see some real progress in Saudi Arabia on Monday, particularly regarding a Black Sea ceasefire on shipping between both nations. From there, it could naturally evolve into a complete ceasefire," he told Fox News.
However, the Kremlin downplayed the likelihood of a swift resolution, emphasizing that the negotiations were still in the early stages.
"We are only at the beginning of this path," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated on Russian state television.
He highlighted numerous unresolved "questions" and "details" regarding how a ceasefire could be implemented.
Russian President Vladimir Putin rejected a joint US-Ukrainian proposal for an immediate 30-day ceasefire, instead offering to suspend attacks solely on energy infrastructure.
"There are difficult negotiations ahead," Peskov said in an interview posted on social media.
Black Sea
Peskov indicated that a key focus of Russia’s discussions with the US would be the potential revival of the 2022 Black Sea grain agreement, which had facilitated safe passage for Ukrainian agricultural exports.
"On Monday, we mainly intend to discuss President Putin’s proposal to reinstate the so-called Black Sea initiative, and our negotiators will be prepared to address the associated complexities," Peskov stated.
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Moscow withdrew from the agreement—brokered by Turkey and the United Nations—in 2023, citing the West’s failure to fulfill commitments to ease restrictions on Russian agricultural exports.
A senior Ukrainian official previously told AFP that Kyiv would push for a broader ceasefire encompassing attacks on energy facilities, infrastructure, and naval operations.
On the eve of the negotiations, both sides carried out drone strikes.
Ukrainian officials reported that a Russian drone attack in Kyiv killed three civilians, including a five-year-old girl and her father.
AFP journalists in the capital witnessed emergency responders assisting the wounded in the early hours of Sunday in front of damaged residential buildings hit during the strike.
While attacks on Kyiv are less frequent than in other regions, they still pose a significant threat.
Ukraine’s air force reported that Russia had launched 147 drones in its latest wave of strikes.
Mutually Beneficial’
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on Kyiv’s allies to apply additional pressure on Moscow.
"New measures and increased pressure on Russia are necessary to end these attacks and this war," he posted on social media on Sunday.
Russia, in turn, stated that it had repelled nearly 60 Ukrainian drone attacks overnight.
Officials reported that a man was killed in Russia’s southern Rostov region when his vehicle was set ablaze by falling drone debris, while another woman died in the Belgorod border region in a separate drone attack.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s military announced it had captured a small village in the eastern Luhansk region, marking a rare battlefield success for its struggling forces.
Moscow enters the Saudi talks amid a warming of relations with Washington under Trump, boosting the Kremlin’s confidence.
Peskov emphasized on Sunday that the "potential for mutually beneficial cooperation between our countries in various fields cannot be overstated."
"We may have disagreements, but that does not mean we should forgo opportunities for mutual benefit," he concluded.