US consultations with Ukraine and Russia have been held in Riyadh. Washington characterised them as ‘indirect negotiations’ between Kiev and Moscow.
On 24 March, expert consultations between Russia and the USA were held in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia). From Russia, they were attended by Grigory Karasin, head of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs and former Deputy Foreign Minister (2005-2019), and Sergei Beseda, advisor to the director of the Federal Security Service. From the US, according to Reuters, are Andrew Peake, senior director of the White House National Security Council, and Michael Anton, director of planning at the State Department. Official statements following the talks came almost 24 hours after they ended.
White House statement on the results of the negotiations
The White House press service reported in the evening of 25 March that during the negotiations in Riyadh, the United States agreed with representatives of Russia and Ukraine to ensure safe navigation, exclude the use of force and prevent the use of commercial vessels for military purposes in the Black Sea. They also discussed the development of a mechanism to ban strikes on energy infrastructure in Russia and Ukraine. The US promised to help Russia ‘restore access to the global market for agricultural and fertiliser exports, reduce marine insurance costs and expand access to ports and payment systems for such transactions’.
During the negotiations with the Ukrainian delegation, representatives of Washington expressed readiness to facilitate the exchange of prisoners of war, detainees and the return of displaced children.
Kremlin statement following the negotiations
The Kremlin’s version, published an hour after the White House announcement, differs slightly from the US version. It mentions five points. The first two concern the readiness of the Russian and American sides to ensure the implementation of the Black Sea Initiative, which includes ensuring the safety of navigation in the Black Sea, the non-use of force and the prevention of the use of commercial vessels for military purposes, while organising appropriate control measures through inspection of such vessels. Moscow confirmed that the US has promised to facilitate the restoration of access of Russian exports of agricultural products and fertilisers to the world market, to reduce the cost of shipping insurance, and to expand access to ports and payment systems for such transactions.
The condition for fulfilment of these points is called:
- lifting sanctions restrictions on Rosselkhozbank and other financial organisations involved in international food trade operations, connecting them to SWIFT and opening the necessary correspondent accounts;
- lifting sanctions restrictions on companies producing and exporting food (including fish products) and fertilisers;
- lifting restrictions on the work of insurance companies with food (including fishery products) and fertiliser cargoes;
- lifting restrictions on port services and sanctions on Russian-flagged vessels involved in trade in food and fertilisers;
- lifting restrictions on the supply of agricultural machinery to the Russian Federation, as well as other goods involved in the production of food and fertilisers.
Three more points in the Russian side’s version are as follows:
- Russia and the U.S. agreed to develop measures to implement the agreements of the two presidents to ban strikes on Russian and Ukrainian energy facilities for a period of 30 days starting 18 March 2025;
- Russia and the U.S. welcome good offices from third countries to support implementation of the energy and maritime agreements;
- Russia and the U.S. will continue to work toward a lasting and enduring peace.
Regarding the ban on strikes on the energy sector, the Kremlin later published a list of Russian and Ukrainian facilities agreed between the Russian and U.S. sides that fall under the temporary moratorium on strikes on the energy system:
- oil refineries;
- oil and gas pipelines and storage facilities, including pumping stations;
- electricity generation and transmission infrastructure, including power plants, substations, transformers and distributors;
- nuclear power plants;
- hydroelectric dams.
According to the Kremlin statement, the moratorium has been in effect since 18 March for 30 days and can be extended. In case of its violation by one of the parties, the other party has the right to consider itself free from the obligation to comply with it.
On 23 March, the same US delegation met with representatives of Ukraine – Defence Minister Rustem Umerov and deputy head of the presidential office Pavlo Palisa – in Riyadh. Kiev hoped to define ‘the parameters of proposals for various ceasefire regimes’ and present a list of infrastructure facilities it would like to withdraw from strikes under a partial ceasefire. According to Umerov, already in Riyadh, the agenda included proposals to protect Ukraine’s energy facilities and critical infrastructure; the Ukrainian delegation included energy experts and representatives of the naval and air components of the republic’s armed forces.
The Ukrainian delegation remained in Saudi Arabia – they continued negotiations with the US after the US-Russian consultations on 25 March. They discussed a 30-day energy truce and a ceasefire in the Black Sea.
