Saudi Ukraine talks start as Russia vows tanker revenge

| August 6, 2023

Senior officials from 40 countries including the United States, China and India have begun talks in Saudi Arabia that Ukraine and its allies hope will lead to agreement on key principles for a peaceful end to Russia’s war in the country.

The two-day meeting is part of a diplomatic push by Ukraine to build support beyond its core allies by reaching out to Global South countries that have been reluctant to take sides in a conflict that has hit the global economy.

It is not clear whether the talks are aimed at producing a joint statement however, and the Ukrainian envoy to the meeting said the conversation “will be difficult”.

“But behind us is truth, behind us – goodness,” envoy Andriy Yermak, head of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s office, said.

Saudi state television reported on Saturday afternoon that the talks had begun.

Russia is not attending although the Kremlin has said it will keep an eye on the talks. 

Ukrainian, Russian and international officials say there is no prospect of direct peace talks between Ukraine and Russia at present, with the war raging.

Zelenskiy has said he hopes the talks will lead to a peace summit of global leaders to endorse principles in his plan for a settlement, which demands Russia’s return of all Ukrainian territory and withdrawal of all its troops.

The world’s top oil exporter Saudi Arabia, which has maintained contacts with both sides since Russia invaded Ukraine last February, has played a role in convening countries that did not join earlier meetings, foreign diplomats have said.

China, which did not attend a previous round of talks in Copenhagen, is sending Special Envoy for Eurasian Affairs Li Hui, officials in Beijing said on Saturday. 

China has kept close economic and diplomatic ties with Russia since the conflict began and has rejected calls to condemn the Kremlin.

“We have many disagreements and we have heard different positions but it is important that our principles are shared,” he said.

Indian National Security Adviser Shri Ajit Doval has also arrived in Jeddah for the talks, the Indian embassy in Riyadh said on social media on Saturday. 

Like China, India has kept close ties with Russia and refused to condemn it for the war. 

It has ramped up imports of Russian oil.

Russian officials said on Saturday it would punish Ukraine for using a sea drone to attack a civilian tanker near the Kerch Strait in what it said was a “terrorist act” that threatened the lives of the crew and risked “a large-scale environmental disaster”.

Both sides said on Saturday that a Ukrainian sea drone full of explosives had struck a Russian fuel tanker overnight near a bridge linking Russia to annexed Crimea, the second such attack in 24 hours.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that Russia would retaliate.

“The Kyiv regime, meeting no condemnation from Western countries and international organisations, is actively applying new terrorist methods, this time in the waters of the Black Sea,” Zakharova said in a statement.

“There can be no justification for such barbaric actions, they will not go unanswered and their authors and perpetrators will inevitably be punished.”

Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev earlier on Saturday suggested Russia would launch more strikes against Ukrainian ports in response to attacks on Russian ships in the Black Sea, and threatened to hand Ukraine “an ecological catastrophe”.