Saudi Arabia to host Ukraine-U.S. talks on Monday

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday reaffirmed Ukraine's commitment to diplomatic talks with the United States while expressing skepticism about Russia's willingness to agree to a ceasefire, reported Xinhua.

During his visit to Oslo, Zelensky confirmed that Ukrainian and Russian representatives will meet their American counterparts respectively in Saudi Arabia on Monday for discussions on Ukraine's future.

However, he stated that Ukraine does not believe Russia will agree to a ceasefire. "We are trying to take steps in the right direction," Zelensky said at a press conference in Oslo alongside Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store.

Zelensky's visit to Norway, his second official trip to the country, included meetings with Norway's Finance Minister and former NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide, and Defense Minister Tore Sandvik.

During the press conference, Store emphasized that Ukraine must have a place at the negotiating table in ceasefire discussions. "A strong European voice is important when discussing Ukraine's future," he said.

In early March, the Norwegian parliament approved an increase in aid to Ukraine by 50 billion Norwegian kroner (47.2 billion U.S. dollars), bringing the total to 85 billion Norwegian kroner by 2025. According to Store, this additional support will be allocated to artillery ammunition, drones, and investments in Ukraine's domestic defense industry.

Meanwhile, the next Russia-U.S. talks, which Washington has said may be held on Sunday, are likely to take place early next week, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Thursday.

"It may not be Sunday itself, now the last nuances are being agreed," Peskov said, adding that the meeting may happen in the next few days, possibly early next week.

Moscow and Washington will discuss the Ukraine settlement and the Black Sea initiative, which was covered during Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump's recent phone call, he said.

The Kremlin said after the phone call Tuesday that Putin and Trump agreed to begin talks to further work out specific details of an agreement regarding the safety of navigation in the Black Sea.

U.S. president's special envoy Steven Witkoff previously said that the United States and Russia are scheduled to hold talks on Sunday in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.