Following discussions in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, the United States has agreed to resume military aid to Ukraine, contingent on Russia accepting a proposed ceasefire.1
Specifically, the U.S. will immediately reinstate intelligence sharing and security assistance, as outlined in a joint statement released after the meeting between Ukrainian and U.S. delegations.2 This decision comes as Ukraine has agreed to a U.S. proposal for a 30-day ceasefire, which could be extended with mutual consent, provided Russia also agrees and implements it.3
President Donald Trump addressed the ceasefire proposal at a White House event, stating, “Ukraine has agreed to it, and hopefully Russia will agree to it.” He added, “I’ll talk to Vladimir Putin.4 It takes two to tango.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking from Jeddah, credited Trump for the outcome and emphasized that Russia now holds the responsibility to accept the ceasefire and engage in “real negotiations” to end the war. “We’ll take this offer now to the Russians. And we hope that they’ll say yes, they’ll say yes to peace. The ball is now in their court,” Rubio said. “The president’s objective here is number one above everything else: He wants the war to end. And I think today Ukraine has taken a concrete step in that regard. We hope the Russians will reciprocate.”
The U.S. delegation included National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, while Ukraine was represented by Andriy Yermak, Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha, and Defense Minister Rustem Umerov.5 Waltz indicated that “shuttle diplomacy” would continue, with direct talks planned with his Russian counterpart. Rubio clarified that other discussions with Russia would occur through “conversations and other methods.”6
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told TASS, “We do not rule out contacts with US representatives over the next few days.”7
These talks mark the first high-level meeting between U.S. officials and the Ukrainian leadership since a prior disagreement between President Zelenskyy and U.S. leaders.8 The U.S. had previously halted military aid and intelligence sharing, prompting Ukraine to “tried desperately to patch up relations” with Washington.9
When questioned about the relationship between Trump and Zelenskyy, Rubio emphasized the focus on peace, saying, “This is serious stuff, okay? This is not Mean Girls. This is not some episode of some television show. This is very serious. People will die in this war. They died yesterday. And sadly, unless there’s a ceasefire tonight, they will die tomorrow. The president wants that to stop. That’s what he’s interested in here. And that’s why we came here.”
Prior to the meeting, Rubio suggested that aid resumption was possible, but also indicated that Ukraine would need to make territorial concessions.10 However, Ukrainian officials stated that territorial concessions were not discussed during the meeting. Daria Zarivna, an advisor to the Ukrainian president, stated, “it is we who want peace the most.11 And we are taking steps to move toward ending the war. Russia should do the same.”
Just before the talks, Ukraine “launched its largest drone attack on Moscow” since the war’s start.12 Andriy Kovalenko, head of Ukraine’s disinformation center, said in a video statement, “All the drone strikes in Russia tonight — on Moscow, on airports and so on — are the signal to Putin that he also must be interested in a truce in the sky that Ukraine is going to offer today during talks.13 Not only oil refineries.”
Meanwhile, NATO leaders prepared to meet in Paris without U.S. participation, to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine. European leaders expressed support for the Jeddah talks.14 European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on X, “We welcome today’s news from Jeddah on the U.S.-Ukraine talks, including the proposal for a ceasefire agreement and the resumption of U.S. intelligence sharing and security assistance.15 This is a positive development that can be a step towards a comprehensive, just and lasting [peace].”
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk also wrote on X, “It seems like the Americans and Ukrainians have taken an important step towards peace.16 And Europe stands ready to help.”
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer congratulated both Trump and Zelenskyy on the “remarkable breakthrough,” and stated, “As both American and Ukrainian delegations have said, the ball is now in the Russian court.17 Russia must now agree to a ceasefire and an end to the fighting too.” He further mentioned, “I will be convening leaders this Saturday to discuss next steps. We are ready to help bring an end to this war in a just and permanent way that allows Ukraine to enjoy its freedom.”