Amid a flurry of dramatic diplomatic discussions, U.S. President Donald Trump is sending a senior team to Saudi Arabia to begin negotiations with Russia and Ukraine with an eye to ending the nearly 3-year-old war, U.S. officials told multiple media outlets.
U.S. officials on February 15 told journalists that Secretary of State Marco Rubio, White House national-security adviser Mike Waltz, and Middle East negotiator Steve Witkoff will participate in the talks.
Keith Kellogg, Trump's envoy for Ukraine and Russia, is not expected to be at the talks, according to media reports citing U.S. officials.
SEE ALSO: Europe May Not Be 'At The Table' For Ukraine Peace Talks, Trump's Envoy SaysA Ukrainian official told Politico the reports took Kyiv off-guard and that there were no plans, as of now, to send a delegation. The U.S. officials also told reporters that there were no plans to include representatives from other allies in the talks.
Separately, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas called for a meeting of the bloc's foreign minister to discuss Ukraine in Munich on the morning of February 16, to be held on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference in Germany.
Reuters, meanwhile, cited four European diplomats as saying that France was looking to arrange an informal summit of EU leaders to discuss Ukraine as early as February 17. No further details were revealed.
The U.S. officials did not provide details or specifics on when the Saudi meetings would take place. Rubio arrived in Israel late on February 15 after traveling to the Munich conference.
The report comes as major discussions regarding the war -- which has cost thousands of lives and caused billions of dollars in destruction -- were taking place in Munich.
Kellogg caused a stir when he said Europe may not be "at the table" if the United States brokers negotiations to end Russia's war against Ukraine.
Speaking at a lunch panel at the conference on February 15, Kellogg suggested Washington is aiming to make substantial progress within weeks, saying he is operating "on Trump time."
Nevertheless, amid concerns in Kyiv and the European Union that they could be sidelined after Trump spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin this week and said Moscow and Washington would start negotiations immediately, Kellogg said Ukraine and Europe would not be left out.
"You've got to bring the allies with you. Are they going to play a part? Of course they are. You can't do it at the exclusion of anyone," he said. "We want to make sure it's lasting and it's sustainable peace."
Asked whether he could assure the audience that "the Ukrainians will be at the table and the Europeans will be at the table," however, Kellogg replied, "Oh, well you just changed the whole dynamic.”
"The answer to that last question...is no," he said, apparently referring to Europe. "The answer to the earlier part of that question is yes -- of course the Ukrainians are going to be there."
U.S. State Department on February 15 said Secretary of Rubio had spoken by phone with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov earlier in the day.
Rubio spoke with Lavrov “as a follow up to President Donald Trump’s conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this week,” a short statement said.
SEE ALSO: No Agreement On Rare Earths After First Rounds Of U.S.-Ukraine Talks In Munich“The secretary reaffirmed President Trump’s commitment to finding an end to the conflict in Ukraine. In addition, they discussed the opportunity to potentially work together on a number of other bilateral issues,” the statement said of Rubio, who arrived on February 15 in Israel for his first Middle East trip since taking office.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry said the two "agreed to maintain an open channel of communication to address long-standing issues in Russian-American relations."
"Both sides expressed a shared commitment to engaging on key international issues, including the situation in Ukraine, developments in Palestine, and the broader Middle East, as well as other regional matters," it said.
Zelenskyy and EU leaders have expressed opposition to any talks that would exclude their negotiators from the process.
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas
The EU's Kallas warned against a “quick fix” and a “dirty deal” to end the conflict, insisting that no peace deal can be implemented without the involvement of Europe and Ukraine.
She added that “appeasement also always fails” and that “Ukraine will continue to resist, and Europe will continue to back Ukraine.”
Addressing the Munich conference, Zelenskyy called on European countries to create a common army in the face of possible U.S. disengagement and the threat from Russia.
"The time has come, the armed forces of Europe must be created," he said.
"If the Americans decided to go that way, decreasing their presence, it's not good, of course, it's very dangerous," he said, speaking in English.
On the sidelines of the Munich conference, the G7 industrialized nations reaffirmed their "unwavering support for Ukraine."
"The G7 members discussed Russia's devastating war in Ukraine," a joint statement read. The G7 consists of United States, Britain, France, Germany, Canada, Japan, and Italy.
"They underscored their commitment to work together to help to achieve a durable peace and a strong and prosperous Ukraine and reaffirmed the need to develop robust security guarantees to ensure the war will not begin again."
Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told Zelenskyy in a call that London remains committed to Ukraine being on "an irreversible path to NATO" membership.
"The prime minister reiterated the U.K.'s commitment to Ukraine being on an irreversible path to NATO, as agreed by allies at the Washington summit last year," a readout of the call released by Starmer's office said.
Starmer said he agreed that there could be no talks "about Ukraine, without Ukraine." He said Kyiv needs solid sovereignty and security guarantees, along with additional military aid.