Egypt Daily News – Ukraine and the United States began talks in Jeddah on Tuesday to negotiate a partial ceasefire with Russia. Kyiv hopes this initiative will help regain the support of the White House, which, since the return of President Donald Trump, has been urging it to make painful concessions to end the three-year-long war.
The focus remained on seeking a resolution to the bloodiest European conflict in generations. However, the United States, Ukraine, and Russia continue to hold starkly different visions of what a cease-fire should entail. Two of the three nations took steps on Tuesday to bridge these differences—mere hours after Ukraine and Russia carried out deadly attacks on each other’s territories.
Inside a conference room at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Jeddah, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Adviser Michael Waltz met with a Ukrainian delegation led by Andriy Yermak, the chief of staff to Ukraine’s president, alongside Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha and Defense Minister Rustem Umerov.
“We aim to have a very constructive, in-depth, friendly, and cooperative discussion,” Yermak stated ahead of the talks.
Ukraine has proposed an immediate halt to air and sea strikes but insists on security guarantees before withdrawing its ground forces. Meanwhile, the United States is advocating for a full and immediate cease-fire, while Russia—absent from the talks—has indicated it expects its own concessions before agreeing to end the war it initiated.
If Ukraine’s proposal to suspend air and sea attacks is accepted, it would mark the first negotiated de-escalation in three years of conflict. However, the Trump administration has signaled that it seeks a broader agreement. As a goodwill measure, Ukraine has offered an unconditional pause on long-range strikes to foster trust while negotiations continue toward a more comprehensive cease-fire.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has stated that any peace deal would require Ukraine to make concessions regarding territory seized by Russia since 2014.
“The most important outcome from these talks is ensuring that Ukraine is willing to make difficult compromises—just as Russia must—so that this conflict can either be resolved or at least paused in some way,” Rubio told reporters on Monday.
Before the talks began on Tuesday, Andriy Yermak, the Ukrainian president’s chief of staff, emphasized that his delegation was “very open” to discussions that could lead to a settlement but stressed the critical importance of security guarantees—an issue that has become a sticking point in negotiations with the United States.
These talks mark the first high-level, in-person meeting between U.S. and Ukrainian officials since the heated February 28 White House encounter between President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, which devolved into an argument. At one point, Trump reportedly cut Zelensky off, saying, “You’ve talked enough. You won’t win.”
In the weeks since, Zelensky has sought to mend ties with Trump, and Ukrainian officials have been careful in presenting their proposals. Over the weekend, French and British diplomats reportedly coached the Ukrainian delegation on how to engage with their American counterparts, according to a Ukrainian official familiar with the matter.
Ukraine is advocating for a cease-fire in the air and at sea but may introduce the idea cautiously, the official said, noting uncertainty over Russia’s willingness to negotiate. “We don’t know if the Russians are ready for any steps toward peace,” the official added, stating that Ukraine would also ask U.S. officials—who have been holding separate discussions with Russia—if they had any insights into Moscow’s stance.
Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri S. Peskov stated on Tuesday that “it is impossible to discuss positions at this time” and indicated that Russia expected the U.S. to brief Moscow on the outcome of its talks with Ukraine.
Russia has previously dismissed the idea of a temporary cease-fire, arguing that it would merely serve as a tactic to delay Ukraine’s military collapse rather than a genuine step toward peace.
