Talks on a proposed 10-point Ukraine peace plan will be held this weekend in the Saudi Arabian coastal city of Jeddah.
Diplomats told The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal that the United States, European nations, Brazil, China, and India have been invited.
Russia was not among those invited, but Kremlin spokesman Dmitri S. Peskov said that the country “will keep an eye on this meeting.”
Peskov said Russia would need to tune in “to fully understand what goals are being set,” according to Russian state-run news agency TASS.
“We have repeatedly said that any attempts to somehow contribute to a peaceful settlement deserve a positive assessment,” Peskov said, per TASS. “Is it possible to reach a peace settlement now with the participation of the Kiev regime and in the context of its current stance? The answer is unambiguous. No, it is impossible.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed Ukraine is being used as a tool of a Western war against Russia, TASS reported.
Andriy Yermak, who leads Ukraine’s office of the president, said a meeting “to restore lasting and just peace” would soon be held in Saudi Arabia, according to the NYT.
The Ukrainians floated a 10-point peace plan at an earlier meeting in Copenhagen, Denmark. It aims to hold Russia accountable for war atrocities and requires Moscow to surrender all captured Ukrainian territory and pay damages. Russia has rejected the plan.
The meeting held in Copenhagen in late June was attended by Brazil, India, Turkey, and South Africa. U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan dialed into the meeting, according to the WSJ. Ukraine and several major European countries also participated.
Saudi Arabia and Ukraine have invited 30 countries to Jeddah, including Indonesia, Egypt, Mexico, Chile, and Zambia.
The Saudi government did not immediately respond to requests for comment from the NYT, but it reflects Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s efforts to be a global leader.
Many nations continue to buy oil from the Russians. The Biden administration has been unable to convince the Saudis and others to isolate Russia.
At the same time, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has pressed Ukraine’s case as a victim of the Russian invasion.
“If Russia withdraws its troops today, the war is over,” he said at the Munich Security Conference in June, according to the NYT. “Of course, if Ukraine stops fighting today, Ukraine is over.”
