US president Donald Trump said talks on Ukraine’s future were addressing issues of “territory” and “power plant ownership” on Monday, as officials from Washington met delegations from Moscow and Kyiv in Saudi Arabia.
Mr Trump spoke shortly after a Russian missile strike on the city of Sumy in northern Ukraine injured at least 88 people, including 17 children, and US and Russian officials met in Riyadh a day after the US negotiators held talks with representatives from Kyiv.
Officials involved directly in the talks said they would focus on a possible halt to hostilities between Ukraine and Russia in the Black Sea – as an extension to a declared pause in strikes on energy infrastructure and as a step towards a full ceasefire in Europe’s biggest war since 1945 – but Mr Trump suggested they were going much further.
“We’re talking about territory right now. We’re talking about lines of demarcation, talking about power, power plant ownership,” he said in the White House. “Some people are saying the United States should own the power plant ... because we have the expertise.”
He appeared to be talking about the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southeastern Ukraine – the biggest in Europe – which has been controlled by Russian troops since 2022 but sits just across the Dnipro river from Kyiv-held territory.
Mr Trump also said a deal to give the US access to Ukraine’s rare-earth minerals and other natural resources and associated infrastructure would be signed “shortly”. It was put on hold after Mr Trump and his vice-president, JD Vance, had a heated exchange with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy in the Oval Office last month.
The Kremlin said Monday’s talks in Riyadh were expected to focus on pausing hostilities in the Black Sea to allow a resumption of shipping from Russian and Ukrainian ports in the area.
“I would say that negotiations are proceeding creatively,” said Grigory Karasin, the Russian career diplomat and senator leading Moscow’s delegation in Saudi Arabia.
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When asked whether there was mutual understanding between the Russian and US delegations, he replied: “Well, how could there not be, if we have been sitting here for what – three hours already – talking about the most serious problems?”
Mr Karasin cautioned against high expectations, however: “Not every negotiation necessarily ends with some big documents and agreements,” he said. “It is important to maintain contact all the time and understand each other’s point of view.”
Ukrainian defence minister Rustem Umerov said talks with US officials on Sunday had been “productive and focused” and that Kyiv wanted “a just and lasting peace for our country and our people – and, by extension, for all of Europe”.
Ukraine’s negotiators were still in Riyadh on Monday and sources said more meetings with their US interlocutors could take place.
Moscow did not comment on its missile attack on Sumy, which came a day after at least three people – including a father and his young daughter – were killed in a drone strike on Kyiv and four people were killed in shelling of eastern Ukraine.
“Moscow speaks of peace while carrying out brutal strikes on densely populated residential areas in major Ukrainian cities. A few hours ago, another horrific Russian bombing of Sumy’s city centre injured dozens [of] civilians, including many children,” said Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha.
“Instead of making hollow statements about peace, Russia must stop bombing our cities and end its war on civilians. Any diplomacy with Moscow must be backed up by firepower, sanctions and pressure,” he added.
Russia accused Ukraine of breaching an agreed halt to attacks on energy infrastructure several times in recent days, which Kyiv denied.
