Ukraine Accepts 30-Day Ceasefire in War with Russia Following Negotiations with the U.S.

The United States and Ukraine announced at the end of a one-day negotiation in Saudi Arabia that Kyiv has agreed to a one-month ceasefire in its war with Russia. A joint statement released on Tuesday evening, March 21, indicated that Ukraine's acceptance of the U.S. proposal led to the immediate lifting of the suspension of military aid by the Trump administration. According to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, the outcome of the nine-hour negotiations in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and less than two weeks after a tense meeting between Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky, is considered a remarkable turnaround. The joint statement from Ukraine and the U.S. stated: "Kyiv has announced its readiness to accept the U.S. proposal for an immediate 30-day ceasefire, which can be extended." The statement added that the implementation of the ceasefire is contingent upon simultaneous acceptance and execution by Russia, and the United States will convey to Russia that the Kremlin's acceptance of the ceasefire proposal is key to achieving peace. Following this statement, Mr. Trump told reporters that negotiations with Russia would take place later today or tomorrow. U.S. and Ukrainian officials traveled to Saudi Arabia; four points about the peace negotiations. Sensitive negotiations took place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, between senior officials from Ukraine and the U.S. Kyiv sought to restore its relations with Washington and break the suspension of arms and battlefield intelligence from the U.S. These negotiations followed extensive drone attacks by Ukraine on Moscow and other regions of Russia, which resulted in the deaths of three people in Russia. Following the tense meeting between the U.S. and Ukrainian presidents, Washington had suspended military aid to Ukraine and limited the sharing of battlefield intelligence with the country. Andriy Yermak, head of Zelensky's office, who led the Ukrainian delegation, announced after four hours of discussions with the U.S. delegation during a break that the negotiations were "progressing." The U.S. delegation was led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz. Mr. Waltz, during the negotiations and after being asked by reporters how the discussions were going, said: "We are making progress." The negotiations continued after a break and lasted into the evening. While discussions between the American and Ukrainian teams were underway, an article was published by the head of Zelensky's office in The Guardian, stating: "A ceasefire in the three-year war that the Russian Federation has initiated against my country has never been closer than this." He further stated that this ceasefire "will not be achieved solely through diplomatic gestures," announcing that it includes applying political and financial pressure on Russia to increase the costs of the war again. Oleksandr Merzhko, head of the foreign relations committee of the Ukrainian parliament, told Radio Free Europe that this meeting should be viewed as "the first step towards improving relations between the new Trump administration and Ukraine" and "a direct meeting" between Zelensky and Trump. He noted that Trump's recent remarks about the Russia-Ukraine war "have raised many questions," saying: "I expect to hear from our American friends about how to stop Russia's aggression and whether there is a strategy from Trump." John Herbst, the former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, also stated that restoring intelligence cooperation should be considered a positive outcome for Kyiv. Meanwhile, the British Prime Minister said on Monday that he had spoken with the U.S. President about the negotiations in Saudi Arabia and expressed hope that the outcome of Tuesday's negotiations would convince Mr. Trump to resume military and intelligence support for Ukraine.