Without Ukrainian officials present, U.S. and Russia meet to discuss ending war

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• Amna Nawaz:

  Welcome to the "News Hour."

  Today, top Russian and U.S. officials met in person for the first time since Russia invaded Ukraine more than 1,000 days ago. The goal, they said, was to chart a path towards peace.

• Geoff Bennett:

  And there was more. The U.S. and Russia raised the possibility of lifting the sanctions they have aimed at each other. They also agreed to work toward restoring staffing at their embassies.

  But there was one glaring omission. Ukrainian officials were not in the room.

  It was a face-to-face not seen in almost three years, U.S. officials led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio meeting with their Russian counterparts in Saudi Arabia to discuss an end to the war in Ukraine and chart a path toward improving bilateral relations. After more than four hours behind closed doors, the U.S. delegation said it saw hints of progress.

  Steve Witkoff, U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East: We couldn't have imagined a better result after this session. It was very, very solid.

  Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of State: I came away today convinced that they are willing to begin to engage in a serious process.

• Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukrainian President:

  Thank you so much.

• Geoff Bennett:

  But just as notable as the talks themselves was a particular absence. Ukraine was not invited. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy postponed his own visit to Saudi Arabia, meeting today instead with Turkey's President Erdogan. Turkey is both friendly with Russia and a member of NATO.

  Zelenskyy reiterated that there could be no peace deal without a seat for Ukraine at the table.

• Volodymyr Zelenskyy (through interpreter):

  This Russian-American meeting in Saudi Arabia was a surprise for us. For Ukraine and for our region, for Europe, it is critical that any negotiations to end the war are not happening behind the backs of the key parties affected by the Russian aggression.

• Geoff Bennett:

  Today, the U.S. dismissed any notion that Ukraine was being left out.

• Mike Waltz, U.S. National Security Adviser:

  Shuttle diplomacy has happened throughout history. It's happened all over the world. We are absolutely talking to both sides.

• Geoff Bennett:

  For Russia, today's sit-down was a chance to lay the groundwork to talk with the U.S. on a wide range of issues, not just about Ukraine.

• Sergey Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister (through interpreter):

  There was a great interest to which we share in resuming consultations on geopolitical problems, where both the United States and Russia have interests. And there was a great interest in removing artificial obstacles to the development of mutually beneficial economic cooperation.

• Geoff Bennett:

  After the Biden administration cut nearly all ties with Russia when it invaded Ukraine, today, steps were taken toward renewing relations and rebuilding economic ties.

• Marco Rubio:

  We need to have diplomatic facilities that are operating and functioning normally.

• Geoff Bennett:

  That's renewed concerns among allies who held their own meetings yesterday and again today in Paris that the new U.S. administration is already too open to items on Vladimir Putin's wish list, namely easing sanctions and letting Russia keep its battlefield gains.

• Mike Waltz:

  We know just the practical reality is that there is going to be some discussion of territory, and there's going to be discussion of security guarantees.

• Geoff Bennett:

  Today marked only the beginning of the conversations. The administration says the talks were meant to pave the way for a meeting between President Trump and Putin, but no date announced yet.