Ukraine peace talks proving tricky for U.S. and Russian negotiators
The U.S. and Russia began a new set of talks in Saudi Arabia aimed at a partial Ukraine ceasefire — even as the two disagree over how well the talks were going.
The United States and Russia began a new set of talks Monday aimed at a partial Ukraine ceasefire — while the two sides disagreed over how well the talks in Saudi Arabia were going and as Kremlin forces launched another night of drone strikes.
Even as Russia's delegation sat down in Riyadh, the Saudi capital, the country's military launched missiles at the Ukrainian city of Sumy on Monday, damaging apartment buildings and a children's hospital and injuring 24 people, Ukrainian officials said.
Nevertheless, American negotiators say they are hopeful of achieving “real progress” at the talks in Saudi Arabia, while Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov warned of "difficult negotiations."
"There are still many aspects related to the settlement which are to be worked out," Peskov told reporters on a media call Monday after Russia's Foreign Ministry published video of its delegation arriving at the Ritz Carlton in Riyadh.
The White House is attempting a strategy of “shuttle diplomacy,” one source familiar with the negotiations told NBC News — meeting with Russian delegates Monday having already spoken with Ukrainian officials in Saudi Arabia a day before.
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