Russia demands NATO concessions in early Ukraine peace talks with US

Russian diplomats have introduced a new demand regarding NATO during peace talks with U.S. officials in Saudi Arabia. They stated that NATO's refusal to allow Ukraine to join is insufficient and called for a retraction of a 2008 promise regarding Ukraine's future membership. The talks, which did not include Ukrainian or European representatives, concluded without any agreements. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted that both sides would establish a mechanism to address issues in U.S.-Russia relations. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that any peace deal must include Ukraine's participation. The discussions ended without a meeting between Putin and Trump, but both sides expressed a willingness to continue dialogue.