Ukraine Anticipates Scope of Russia Ceasefire Proposal At Saudi Arabia Talks

Ukrainian officials anticipated the scope of the initial, limited ceasefire proposal they will present U.S. counterparts at their talks in Saudi Arabia.

The Associated Press reported that the proposal would cover the Black Sea and long-range missile strikes, as well as the release of prisoners. It is unclear whether the partial truce will be presented and what the response from Russia will be.

Talks are ongoing in Jeddah, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the mix. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is also in the country but is not taking part in the talks. The two haven't met either, but they did have separate conversations with Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Rubio grabbed headlines on Monday night after saying concessions by Ukraine are "the only way" to end the war. "They've suffered greatly and their people have suffered greatly, 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 to prevent more suffering," Rubio said.

The Secretary of State anticipated that what Kyiv is "willing to do in order to achieve peace" may be "incompatible with what the Russians are willing to do," but that talks are aimed at finding that out.

In parallel, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday that Western Security officials believe Russian President Vladimir Putin has no intention of compromising on land, peacekeepers and Ukrainian neutrality demands, potentially complicating any positive outcome.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov rejected the report, saying "Russia is open for peace efforts, for peace settlement around Ukraine, and we actually prefer to reach our goals through peaceful and diplomatic means." "If today and tomorrow shows that Ukraine is ready for negotiations, it will be a different story."

However, the outlet had reported last week that Putin was ready to begin discussing a potential ceasefire with Ukraine provided some conditions are met, including the conformation of a peacekeeping mission. The offer was conveyed last months during talks in Saudi Arabia between U.S. and Russian officials. Moscow indicated that any cessation of hostilities would need to include a clear understanding regarding the framework of a final peace agreement.

The parameters of an eventual peacekeeping mission and the countries involved in it are a key aspect of any way forward. Russia has anticipated it won't accept the presence of any troops belonging to NATO countries. It does not object to countries that have stayed neutral throughout the conflict.