By US correspondent James Matthews
The elephants in the room are a country that is not yet like that.
Due to all assurances by the US Secretary of State that Kiev will be involved in future consultations, there is little valuable evidence of it.
Similarly, Ukraine gives valuable little encouragement from the discussion in Riyadh.
Consider the report of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. “There is reason to believe that the US has begun to understand our position better. This has been outlined again in detail using specific examples, based on President Putin’s repeated speeches.”
What is “better to understand” beyond the position in which all the ambitions of Ukrainian territory and NATO membership exist?
It is the ground already caught by the Americans – to hear Russia is even more secure, it does nothing to reinforce the notion that Ukraine and European allies are involved and influential.
Literally, Russians were given seats at the table and framed these lectures as an effort to improve relations in Russia.
It’s a vision shared by Americans. The Secretary of State shared his vision and spoke about restoring staff at each embassy and exploring closer economic cooperation.
He raised Russian interests in dropping sanctions on European countries, saying, “There are also sanctions imposed on the European Union, so we’ll have to be at the table at some point.”
In Ukraine, Rubio spoke about creating a “high-level team” to support peace negotiations in Ukraine, but the impression of low-level priorities in Ukraine’s interests is all the impression.
The US Secretary of State said concessions must be made in all aspects – it is not a square with Ukraine’s starting point for negotiations, and that concession must come from the invaders.
It is a troubling argument that does not fit the framework of strengthened US-Russia relations, and has emerged rapidly as Washington’s main priority.
People on Donald Trump’s orbit speak of his broader ambitions regarding the reset of geopolitical structures that have close ties to Moscow.
The same people say that Ukraine is a small part of the picture.
Nothing that happened in Riyadh is inconsistent with that message.
