Rubio arrives in Saudi Arabia before Russia talks to end Ukraine war

US secretary of state Marco Rubio arrives in Saudi Arabia on Monday before talks with Russian officials aimed at ending Moscow's nearly three-year war in Ukraine.

The talks come after President Donald Trump last week spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin by phone and ordered top officials to begin negotiations on the war, which he repeatedly vowed to end during his presidential campaign.

Riyadh, which is also involved in talks with Washington about the future of the Gaza Strip, has played a role in early contacts between the Trump administration, which took office on January 20, and Moscow, helping to secure a prisoner swap last week.

Rubio, who spoke by phone to his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Saturday, will meet Russian officials in Saudi Arabia with Trump's national security adviser Mike Waltz and White House Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, a US legistor, a source told Reuters. It was not immediately clear who they would meet from Russia.

Russian newspaper Kommersant reported the talks would take place on Tuesday in the Saudi capital Riyadh, citing unnamed sources.

The talks will be among the first high-level in-person discussions in years between Russian and US officials and are meant to precede a meeting between the US and Russian presidents.

Rubio on Sunday said the coming days and weeks would determine whether Putin is serious about peace.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is also in the region. Zelensky, who arrived in the UAE on Sunday, said he also intended to visit Saudi Arabia and Turkey, but no dates were set. He had no plans to meet Russian or US officials and Ukraine is not believed to be invited to the Saudi-hosted talks.

GAZA TALKS

Rubio is expected to meet Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) in Saudi Arabia. On the agenda is likely to be Trump's proposal for the Palestinian residents of Gaza to be resettled in other Arab nations and for the US to lead reconstruction of their home.

That proposal has infuriated the Arab World and heightened fears among Palestinians in Gaza of being driven out of the coastal strip.

Gaza has been devastated by the war that broke out when Iran-backed militants Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking 250 hostage, according to Israeli tallies. The offensive Israel launched in response killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health authorities, before an agreement reached last month brought a fragile ceasefire.

Saudi Arabia, with other Arab nations, has rejected any plan that involves resettling Palestinians and Riyadh is spearheading Arab efforts to develop a counterproposal which could involve a Gulf-led reconstruction fund and a deal to sideline Hamas.

MbS has also insisted Saudi Arabia would not normalise ties with Israel — a long-standing goal of Washington — without an agreement on a pathway to a Palestinian state.

Rubio visited Israel on Sunday and met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, pledging support for Israel in its regional rivalry with Iran.

Reuters