Ukraine is to propose its own ceasefire deal in talks with the US in Saudi Arabia, aiming to sign the ‘Rare Earth Minerals’ deal with Washington to resume paused military aid after Zelenskyy-Trump tensions.
A Ukrainian delegation set to meet with America’s top diplomat in Saudi Arabia about ending the 3-year war with Russia.
The delegation will propose a ceasefire covering the Black Sea and long-range missile strikes, as well as the release of prisoners, two senior Ukrainian officials said on Monday.
The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, also told The Associated Press that the Ukrainian delegation is ready during the talks to sign an agreement with the United States on access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals — a deal that US President Donald Trump is keen to secure.
Kyiv is trying to repair the damage done when Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s Feb. 28 visit to Washington descended into a live on air argument in the Oval Office with Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
At stake is the military aid and intelligence previously offered by the US that had helped Ukraine in the war but is now paused as Washington pushes for a peace agreement.
Rubio and Zelenskyy landed a few hours apart Jeddah, though they were not expected to meet. Both were to meet separately with the kingdom’s powerful crown prince on Monday evening.
Speaking to reporters aboard his plane, Rubio said he and national security adviser Mike Waltz would assess Ukraine’s responses in Saudi Arabia.
If Ukraine and the US reach an understanding acceptable to Trump, that could accelerate his administration’s push for peace talks.
Rubio: We will see how far apart we truly are
“What we want to know is, are they interested entering some sort of peace conversation and general outlines of the kinds of things they could consider, recognizing that it has been a costly and bloody war for the Ukrainians. They have suffered greatly, and their people have suffered greatly,” Rubio said. “And it’s hard in the aftermath of something like that to even talk about concessions, but that’s the only way this is going to end and prevent more suffering.”
He added: “I’m not going to set any conditions on what they have to or need to do. I think we want to listen to see how far they’re willing to go and then compare that to what the Russians want and see how far apart we truly are.”
Zelenskyy has said his team meeting with Rubio will include his chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, foreign minister Andriy Sybiha, and Defense Minister Rustem Umerov. Rubio will lead the U.S. team.
Europe is skeptical about the talks
The rest of Europe remains skeptical about the talks as Washington has sidelined them.
Last week, the European Union agreed to boost the continent’s defences and to free up hundreds of billions of euros for security in response to the Trump administration’s shift in stance on Ukraine.
White House special envoy Steve Witkoff told Fox News on Monday that the pause in US intelligence sharing with Ukraine has not limited ‘defence intelligence’ sharing.
“We never shut off intelligence for … anything defensive that the Ukrainians need,” Witkoff said.
ADVERTISEMENTA pause on sharing US intelligence that can be used for offensive purposes by Ukrainian forces remains in effect, according to a US official familiar with the matter who was not authorized to comment and spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The official suggested that progress could be made toward reinstating intelligence-sharing with Ukraine during the Saudi talks.
