By Daily Mail (World News) | Created at 2025-03-25 16:20:32 | Updated at 2025-04-05 03:00:13
1 week ago
Russia and Ukraine have agreed to an effective maritime ceasefire, as well as a halt on strikes on energy infrastructure, following successful U.S.-mediated talks in Saudi Arabia today, the White House said.
Both parties agreed separately to avoid military strikes on vessels, the issue touted by the Trump administration as being of primary importance to allow for unhindered commercial shipping in the region.
In parallel statements, the White House said that each country 'agreed to ensure safe navigation, eliminate the use of force and prevent the use of commercial vessels for military purposes in the Black Sea.'
It also said that the U.S. and Ukraine had agreed to develop measures for implementing a ban on strikes against energy facilities in both Ukraine and Russia, after both sides accused each other of breaching the ceasefire last week.
Ukrainian defence minister Rustem Umerov added in a corresponding statement that the latest round of talks in Riyadh had furthermore centred on the release and return of prisoners and children.
He insisted that 'no one wants a just peace more than Ukrainians, and our position remains honest, transparent and consistent'. But he added that the Ukrainian side 'emphasizes' that any Russian movement of military vessels outside of the eastern part of the Black Sea would be seen as a violation of the agreement.
'In this case, Ukraine will have full right to exercise right to self-defence,' he wrote, drawing clear red lines for engagement.
"If the Russians violate this, then I have a direct question for President Trump,' President Zelensky told reporters in Kyiv. 'If they violate, here is the evidence - we ask for sanctions, we ask for weapons, etc.'
Vladimir Putin gives a speech during a ceremony at the Kremlin in Moscow on March 25, 2025
Smoke billows from a residential building following a missile attack in Sumy, northeastern Ukraine, on March 24, 2025
The Ritz-Carlton hotel, where talks between Russia and U.S. are being held aimed at ending the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, March 24
The White House published two readouts from the talks, highlights the main achievements from both the Russian and Ukrainian perspectives.
The Russia-specific readout emphasized that the U.S. would help 'restore Russia’s access to the world market for agricultural and fertiliser exports, lower maritime insurance costs, and enhance access to ports and payment systems for such transactions'.
The Ukraine-specific readout emphasized that the U.S. 'remains committed to helping achieve the exchange of prisoners of war, the release of civilian detainees, and the return of forcibly transferred Ukrainian children'.
Today's talks followed a summit between U.S. and Russian representatives, also in Riyadh, on Monday, aimed at rejoining some of the key differences in demands between the warring parties.
Sergei Lavrov, making sense of Russia's talks with the U.S., said that the Kremlin was willing to strike a new agreement tantamount to a ceasefire at sea with Ukraine - subject to certain security guarantees.
'Given the sad experience of agreements with just Kyiv, the guarantees can only be the result of an order from Washington to Zelenskyy and his team to do one thing and not the other,' Lavrov said in an muted affront to Ukraine.
