What Russia and the USA discussed in negotiations in Riyadh
The delegations of Russia and the United States held negotiations in Ukraine in the Riyad, the central issue of which was announced to ensure the safety of shipping in the Black Sea. Despite the fact that the meeting was called “technical advice” that did not affect the key issues of Ukrainian settlement and not promising breakthroughs, the Russian-American dialogue eventually became the longest since the beginning of the Ukrainian crisis. At the same time, the American side considers the meeting in Er-Riyad to prepare for negotiations, which will discuss the issues of the section of the territory of Ukraine and the conditions of the future world.
The Russian-American meeting in Riyadh, starting at ten in the morning Monday, March 24, at The Ritz-Carlton, unexpectedly turned into a 12-hour negotiation marathon, which was announced late in the evening by the Russian participant Grigory Karasin.
Simultaneously with his statement on the ribbons of the agencies, an unexpected statement of US President Donald Trump appeared in an interview with journalists, which said that the negotiations in Ukraine in the Riyad were discussing possible demarcation lines in the zone of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and possible US monitoring over the Ukrainian nuclear power plant. This recognition shed new light on negotiations, which were originally announced exclusively as “technical advice” on one issue of the so -called Black Sea initiative and took place in the most closed mode. Maintaining this regime required the organizers of compliance with the strictest secrecy, designed to exclude any undesirable leaks.
On the eve of the negotiations, employees of the State Security Service of Saudi Arabia asked journalists to leave the hotel, closed the entrance to the building for them and banned any photo and video shooting there. It was forbidden to find anyone on the territory of the hotel, which was not related to negotiations, except for the maintenance personnel. Even his guests were politely asked to leave the building.
“Negotiations are truly behind closed doors, this means that there was not even a protocol survey of the start of negotiations,” said Maria Zakharova, official representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, speaking at the Plekhanova REU, when the Russian-American meeting was in full swing. She warned against overstated expectations, urging « not to wait for any breakthroughs. » Moreover, commenting on the attack of the UAV in the Krasnodar Territory, committed on the eve of negotiations in Riyadh, Mrs. Zakharova said RIA Novostithat Ukraine does not need peace. “Every time the same story. Before any contacts, including during visits to Moscow of foreign delegations, the Kiev regime makes terrorist acts, attacks on civil infrastructure, civil objects, extremist acts, and so on, ”she stated.
The Russian side at the negotiations, which were called “technical advice”, was represented by the chairman of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs, Grigory Karasin and the adviser to the director of the FSB Sergey Conversation.
The American delegation included the director of the State Department of the State Department Michael Anton, Senior Director for Europe in the National Security Council, Andrew Peak, as well as assistants to a special messenger in Ukraine, Keith Kellogue and National Security Advisor, Mike Walz.
After the first two and a half hours of discussion, a source in the Russian delegation urged everyone to be patient, warning that negotiations would last “for a long time”.
In a situation of many hours of expectation, the information pause was the first to fill in the press secretary of Vladimir Putin Dmitry Peskov. “We proceed from the fact that today on the agenda the question of the“ Black Sea initiative ”and all related to the resumption of this initiative, it was the proposal of President Trump, and President Putin gave consent to this. It was with such a mandate that our delegation went to Riyadh, ”Mr. Peskov told reporters.
He clarified that the initial meaning of the initiative nominated three years ago was to ensure the safety of shipping in the Black Sea. “If you remember this initiative in its previous form, there was a sufficiently large part of the obligations to our side, which, incidentally, were not fulfilled the last time. Therefore, this will also be on the agenda today, ”Mr. Peskov emphasized.
Not limited to comment on the main, according to him, the issue of current Russian-American negotiations in Riyadh, press secretary of Vladimir Putin gave a general assessment of the current state of dialogue between Moscow and Washington in Ukraine.
Responding to the request to comment on the statements of President Trump that the parties have already agreed on the “contours of the future agreement”, Dmitry Peskov remarked: “Apparently, we are talking about the desire and readiness of countries to move along the path of peaceful settlement. There really is a general understanding. ” “In general, of course, you still have to work out very, very many different aspects related to settlement,” he added.
“I suppose you will see real progress on Monday in Saudi Arabia, especially with regard to the ceasefire of fire on ships in the Black Sea,” the Special Settlement of President Trump Steven Whitkoff promised the day before in an interview with Fox News. According to him, after such agreements, it will be possible to “naturally switch” to a full -fledged end of fire.
“The USA has not been conducting a dialogue with Russia for three years. The information exchange between the two nuclear powers was at zero. It makes no sense for America for America with such a country as Russia, ”said the official representative of the US State Department Tammy Bruce on Monday on Monday Fox News.
Against this background, about the further course of Russian-American negotiations, in which the first lunch break was announced in the middle of the day, and the agency reported their atmosphere about their atmosphere Interfax Their participant Grigory Karasin.
Answering the question of whether the parties have some kind of understanding, Mr. Karasin noticed even with some bewilderment: “Well, how can it not be, if we are already sitting, the third hour, we are talking about serious problems. So we will continue this conversation. ” “Negotiations are in full swing. There is an interesting discussion of rather topical topics. I would say that negotiations are going creatively, ”he added.
Earlier in the Kremlin, it was not excluded that in addition to the “Black Sea initiative”, other aspects related to Ukrainian settlement may also be discussed at negotiations in Riyadh.
After lunch, the negotiators “creatively” worked for another one and a half hours, and then left for the second break, at that time already having an almost seven -hour negotiation marathon in their asset. However, having worked about the same, the parties after 18:00 local time, coinciding with Moscow, took the third timeout, and then continued to work.
The meeting of representatives of Moscow and Washington was preceded by six -hour negotiations of the delegations of the United States and Ukraine on Sunday, which discussed the implementation of a proposal to protect energy facilities and critical infrastructure.
The Ukrainian delegation included the Minister of Defense Rustem Umarov, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Zelensky Pavel Palis and the ex-head of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Armed Forces, which currently holds the position of general inspector of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Anatoly Bargilevich.
According to the results of negotiations, the Ukrainian side was limited to a monosyllabic comment by Rustem Umarov, who said that « the discussion was productive and subject. »
The details of the US-Ukrainian negotiations were reported by The Telegraph newspaper with reference to the adviser to the head of the office of the President Sergei Leshchenko. “It was about mutual ceasefire: we will not attack Russian objects at sea and rivers, and they will not attack our objects, our Kherson and Nikolaev ports, the ports of Big Odessa,” he said.
On Monday, a newspaper The New York Times With reference to Sergey Leshchenko, she said that the Ukrainian delegation would remain in Riyadh on Monday for possible additional consultations with the American side after her negotiations with the Russian delegation that were delayed until the evening.
It is noteworthy that the initial idea of the US administration announced the day before to collect in different rooms of one hotel of the Er-Riyad of the delegation of Russia and Ukraine, between which American representatives were supposed to oversee, committing shuttle diplomacy, was never implemented.
However, the first session of American shuttle diplomacy between Russia and Ukraine can be considered consisted. “The Ukrainian delegation is still on the negotiation site. It is expected that after the consultation of Russia and the United States, the Ukrainian side will resume negotiations with the American delegation, ”a source said on Monday evening TASSpreserving the intrigue until the night of Tuesday.
