Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has arrived in Saudi Arabia ahead of talks between Ukrainian and United States officials on the future of the war with Russia.
Mr Zelenskyy was scheduled to meet with the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, but is not expected to stay in the Middle East kingdom for the broader discussions with the Trump administration.
The summit in the coastal city of Jeddah comes just over a week after a fiery verbal brawl in the Oval Office between the Ukrainian leader and US President Donald Trump, evidence of a severe deterioration in the relationship between Kyiv and Washington DC.
Since then, Mr Zelenskyy has described the meeting as "regrettable", and the US has paused weapons shipments and intelligence support to Ukrainian forces.
Saudi Arabia is trying to position itself as a peace broker between Ukraine and Russia, hosting meetings between the US and Russian officials on the war last month.
"Ukraine has been seeking peace since the very first second of the war, and we have always said that the only reason it continues is Russia," Mr Zelenskyy posted on social media platform X.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has also travelled to Saudi Arabia for the talks.
White House Middle East envoy expecting 'substantial progress'
Ahead of Mr Zelenskyy's arrival, the White House's Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff said there was "an expectation that we're going to make substantial progress" during the negotiations.
"I think that part of a mediation like this is to move the two sides closer, to narrow the differences," he told Fox News.
"We've gone a long way to do that with the Russians.
"I am really hopeful, all the signs are very, very positive from Zelenskyy, from his next in command [Andriy] Yermak, from the Europeans."
Mr Witkoff also sought to clarify the scope of the Trump administration's decision to cut US military cooperation with Ukraine.
"We never shut off intelligence for defensive, for anything defensive that the Ukrainians need," he said.
"That's never been shut off."
He added he was hopeful the critical minerals deal between the US and Ukraine, which looked to be shelved after the Oval Office shouting match, could be signed this week.
The agreement would give the US access to Ukraine's critical minerals reserves, and reportedly result in the establishment of a joint fund for the proceeds of sales.
As Mr Zelenskyy arrived in Jeddah, Downing Street confirmed UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Mr Trump had spoken about the summit.
"The prime minister said that UK officials had been speaking to Ukraine officials over the weekend and they remain committed to a lasting peace," a spokeswoman said.
"The prime minister said he hoped there would be a positive outcome to the talks that would enable US aid and intelligence sharing to be restarted."
Russia says it is up to Ukraine to show desire for peace
The Kremlin, which launched the illegal invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, said it was up to Ukraine to show it was ready to negotiate.
"It doesn't matter what we're expecting [from the talks], it matters what the United States are expecting," spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
"We've repeatedly heard statements on various levels that the United States are expecting Ukrainians to demonstrate a desire to make peace.
"Well, that's probably what everyone is waiting for — do they really want peace, the members of Zelenskyy's regime, or not?"
Russia continues to control large swathes of Ukrainian territory, and has rejected calls for a temporary ceasefire.
Mr Witkoff believed the momentum for peace was there.
"What's on the table, what's important to discuss are obviously security protocols for the Ukrainians — they care about that — the territorial issues, the utility plan," Mr Witkoff told Fox News.
"These are not complicated things, they just need to be put on the table and everybody needs to be transparent about what their expectations are
"Then we can begin to have a discussion around how we compromise."
