Moscow explained that Russia and the U.S. did not adopt a statement following the Riyadh meeting due to Ukraine’s position

A joint statement following yesterday’s negotiations between Washington and Moscow in Riyadh was not adopted due to Ukraine’s position.

This was stated by Vladimir Chizhov, First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Defense and Security.

“They (the Russian and American delegations) sat for 12 hours and seemingly agreed on a joint statement, which, however, was not adopted due to Ukraine’s position. This is also quite telling and symptomatic,” Chizhov said.

Earlier, American and Russian sources announced that a joint statement on the negotiations’ outcome would be published soon. However, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov later denied media reports about this, stating that the content of the negotiations would not be disclosed since they were “technical consultations.”

U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz had previously said that the U.S. and Russia would discuss a ceasefire, prospects for long-term peace, the cessation of hostilities in the Black Sea, as well as grain and fuel trade. Steven Witkoff, the U.S. president’s special representative, noted that Washington expected “real progress” on the issue of a ceasefire in the Black Sea.

Meanwhile, the Kremlin confirmed that the negotiations in Saudi Arabia included discussions on resuming the grain deal.