President Volodymyr Zelensky will visit Turkey and Saudi Arabia in the coming days, it was reported on Feb. 17.
Citing its own sources, Suspilne said Zelensky would arrive in Riyadh on Feb. 19, though Reuters reported it would be Feb. 18.
Turkey's Turkiye Newspaper later reported Zelensky would visit Ankara on Feb. 18.
The Ukrainian president's visit to Saudi Arabia will coincide with the U.S.-Russia talks on ending the war in Ukraine, which will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Zelensky said that Ukraine would not participate in these talks.
"Ukraine knew nothing about it. And Ukraine considers any negotiations on Ukraine without Ukraine (as such) to be futile," Zelensky said during a press briefing in the United Arabic Emirates.
"And we cannot recognize anything or any arrangements about us without us. And we will not recognize such an arrangement," Zelensky added.
Zelensky stressed that his official visit to Saudi Arabia has nothing to do with "the things that are happening in Saudi Arabia at the level of representatives of the U.S. and Russia."
The president added that he would discuss negotiations with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman.
On Feb. 16, Saudi Arabia and Ukraine delegations met to discuss increased investment and bilateral cooperation between the two nations.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, and Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff are expected to hold meetings with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Kremlin foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov on the exact dates.
U.S. President Donald Trump also announced that he would meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Saudi Arabia as part of efforts to negotiate an end to the war. It remains unclear to what extent Ukraine will be involved in these discussions.
Dmytro Basmat
