Egypt Daily News – Secretary of State Mike Rubio arrived in Saudi Arabia after his visit to Israel on Sunday. Upon his arrival in Riyadh, he met with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud.
The U.S. Secretary is expected to meet with Saudi leaders, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, before heading to the United Arab Emirates as part of his first Middle East tour.
Media reports indicate that Rubio is expected to hold talks with Russian officials aimed at ending Moscow’s nearly three-year-long war in Ukraine.
The Kremlin stated that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, along with Yuri Ushakov, President Vladimir Putin’s foreign policy advisor, will participate in talks on Tuesday with U.S. officials in Saudi Arabia regarding U.S.-Russia relations.
Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesperson, explained to journalists that the meeting will also focus on preparations for potential peace talks regarding Ukraine. He added that Lavrov and Ushakov will head to Riyadh on Monday.
Kyiv said it was not invited to the discussions in Riyadh. “Ukraine will not take part in the negotiations. Ukraine did not know they were planned. And the visit to the region was planned long before the U.S. decided to meet Russia there,” Zelenskyy said, adding that any peace talks held without Kyiv at the negotiating table “will bring no result.”
