By Dilara Afifi and Ikram Kouachi
ISTANBUL (AA) - Saudi Arabia welcomed on Friday the upcoming meeting between US and Ukrainian officials, scheduled for next week in Jeddah, aimed at finding solutions to end the Russian-Ukrainian war.
The meeting underscores Saudi Arabia's "ongoing commitment to promoting peace and achieving a lasting resolution to the Ukrainian crisis," according to a statement issued by the Saudi Foreign Ministry, which welcomed the talks in Jeddah, a port city on the Red Sea.
The ministry clarified that Saudi Arabia “has been actively engaged in efforts to bring about peace in the region over the past three years, hosting multiple meetings on this matter.”
On Thursday evening, US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff announced that Saudi Arabia would host the US-Ukraine meeting next week to discuss the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.
Earlier, the US media had already reported on the anticipated meeting between US and Ukrainian officials in Riyadh on Wednesday, as US President Donald Trump looks to end the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
According to reports, the US delegation will include Witkoff, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, while the Ukrainian delegation will be led by Andriy Yermak, head of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office.
Last Friday, a meeting between Trump and Zelensky at the White House was marked by tense discussions, which prevented a deal on rare earth minerals, which Trump had requested in exchange for US support for Ukraine during its war with Russia.
On Feb. 12, Trump had a one-and-a-half-hour phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, followed by a meeting with delegations from both countries in Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, on Feb. 18 to discuss normalizing bilateral relations and ending the ongoing conflict.
Since Feb. 24, 2022, Russia has launched a military offensive against neighboring Ukraine, demanding Kyiv abandon its aspirations to join Western military alliances, a condition Kyiv sees as interference in its sovereignty.