US, Russia negotiators begin talks in Saudi Arabia's Riyadh

Riyadh [Saudi Arabia], March 24 (ANI): The high-stakes meeting between a US delegation led by US Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Wiktkoff and Kremlin negotiators has started in Saudi Arabia's Riyadh, where the Trump administration is pushing for a ceasefire in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict in separate talks with Moscow and Kyiv, CNN reported.
The talks started on Monday morning, TASS news agency reported, citing an unnamed source. The meeting comes a day after talks were held between a US team led by President Donald Trump's Ukraine envoy, Keith Kellogg, and Ukraine's Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, which was termed "productive and focused" by the latter.
Many watching from the US and across Europe hope some initial positivity can be translated into a 30-day ceasefire and long-term negotiations. The Russian delegation at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Riyadh includes Kremlin diplomat Grigory Karasin and former spy chief Sergey Beseda, CNN reported citing Russian state media.
Many in Ukraine consider Beseda a hard-nosed nationalist and an early supporter of Russia's invasion in February 2022. Speaking to podcast host Tucker Carlson on Sunday, Witkoff seemed to show some sympathy towards Russia's territorial goals in Ukraine, calling the four regions which Russia wants to formally annex -- Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk -- "Russian speaking," CNN reported.
He said, "There have been referendums where the overwhelming majority of the people have indicated that they want to be under Russian rule." In September 2022, Russia conducted a referendum in the four territories. However, the US and European nations criticised the voting and called it a sham.
Witkoff said, "The Russians are de facto in control of these territories. The question is: Will the world acknowledge that those are Russian territories?" He said, "Can (Ukrainian President Volodymyr) Zelensky survive politically if he acknowledges this? This is the central issue in the conflict."
Russia has said that a ceasefire will not be possible until Ukraine agrees not to use it to resupply or reorganize its soldiers. It has also made key demands like Ukraine will never be allowed to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
On Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy put the responsibility on his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to end the war. He said, "The one who brought this war must take it away."
On Sunday, the US and Ukraine delegations held talks in Saudi Arabia, which Ukraine Defence Minister Rustem Umerov termed "productive".
"We have concluded our meeting with the American team. The discussion was productive and focused -- we addressed key points, including energy. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's goal is to secure a just and lasting peace for our country and our people -- and, by extension, for all of Europe. We are working to make that goal a reality", he said.

In a televised statement, Zelenskyy said, "Our team is working in a completely constructive manner. The conversation is quite useful; the work of the delegations is continuing," he said.
"But no matter what we say to our partners today, we need to get [Russian President Vladimir] Putin to give a real order to stop the strikes. Whoever brought this war must take it back," he added. (ANI)