The Kremlin said that it did not completely know the purpose of talks planned in Saudi Arabia about Moscow's war in Ukraine. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said, “Of course, Russia will follow this meeting. We need to understand what goals are set and what will be discussed. Any attempt to promote a peaceful settlement deserves a positive evaluation.”
"The Kyiv regime does not want and cannot want peace, as long as it is used exclusively as a tool in the war of the collective West with Russia," he added.
Meanwhile, Ukraine said that Russia was not welcome at the meeting which was first reported last week by the Wall Street Journal. The report claimed that Saudi Arabia would invite Western states, Ukraine and major countries to talks focusing on Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky's peace plan which was proposed earlier this year and calls for the withdrawal of all Russian troops and restoration of Ukraine's post-Soviet borders.
Kyiv and Western countries hoped that the talks could lead to international backing for Ukraine's peace terms, the report claimed.
Mexican president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrado said that he was willing to attend the meeting if both Russian and Ukrainian representatives were present.
“If there's acceptance from both Ukraine and Russia to look for solutions to achieve peace, we'll participate. We don't want the Russia-Ukraine war to continue, it's very irrational,” he said.
What Ukraine has said so far on talks in Saudi Arabia?
{{/usCountry}}“If there's acceptance from both Ukraine and Russia to look for solutions to achieve peace, we'll participate. We don't want the Russia-Ukraine war to continue, it's very irrational,” he said.
What Ukraine has said so far on talks in Saudi Arabia?
{{/usCountry}}Andriy Yermak, Zelensky's chief of staff, said Ukraine would be "boundlessly happy if West, East, South and North work in this format towards renewing a system of world security".
"But this is a forum of responsible states who stand by international rights and the UN statutes. And that's why Russia won't be there," Andriy Yermak asserted.
Will Vladimir Putin attend the talks?
It is unclear whether Russian president Vladimir Putin would attend the talks. The Russian leader said last week that an African initiative on Ukraine war could be a basis for peace. Ukrainian attacks on Russia made this hard to realise, he said.