Marco Rubio Talks to Russian Foreign Minister as Preparations for U.S-Russia Discussions Planned in Saudi Arabia

Sundance reporting for CTH 

As expected, initial direct talks between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are being planned to take place in Saudi Arabia.  Saudi King Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) will be the key emissary to coordinate the agenda.

WASHINGTON DC – U.S. State Secretary Marco Rubio held a phone conversation with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Feb. 15, just days after U.S. President Donald Trump spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“Building on the Feb. 12 phone conversation between the presidents of Russia and the United States, the foreign ministers agreed to maintain a communication channel to address accumulated issues in Russian-American relations,” a readout from the Russian Foreign Ministry read.

“This is aimed at removing the unilateral barriers inherited from the previous administration that hinder mutually beneficial trade, economic, and investment cooperation.”

[…] Saudi Arabia will reportedly hold a summit between Trump and Putin in Riyadh, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said on Feb. 14, although the dates have not yet been finalized.

During a speech at the Munich Security Conference on Feb. 15, amid uncertainty over further U.S. support against potential Russian aggression, Zelensky called on Europe to create its own armed forces. (read more)

It is being reported by Politico that National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Steve Witkoff, the president’s Middle East envoy, will soon be heading to Saudi Arabia to start peace talks with Russian and Ukrainian negotiators.

European leaders, NATO members and U.S. Senators who receive funding from the Ukraine grift, are having fits of apoplexy at the possibility of President Trump and President Putin coming to terms of a peace deal without members of the European Union present in the discussions.

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy is under pressure from a host of influence agents in the EU and U.S intelligence apparatus to push out his chest and be more forceful, lest peace arrive -and defense spending needs diminish- without his vertically challenged input.

[…] The possibility of excluding Ukraine and European allies from potential peace talks has created unease among diplomats on the continent, but some see the complaints as indicative of the power imbalance between Washington and Europe.

“If you have to insist you’re relevant, it likely means you’re not,” one European diplomat said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he does not trust that Putin is ready for genuine peace talks following three years of war. “Trump said to me that Putin wants to stop the war. I said to him ‘Putin is a liar. I hope that you will pressure him because I don’t trust him,’” Zelenskyy said at Munich. (read more)