U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrives Saudi Arabia for high-stakes talks on Ukraine and Gaza.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrives Saudi Arabia for high-stakes talks on Ukraine and Gaza.

Amid growing international concerns over exclusion of key stakeholders. Rubio meetings with Russian officials, including Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, aim to lay groundwork for potential Trump-Putin negotiations on ending Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy currently in the UAE criticized the Riyadh talks for omitting Kyiv, stating Ukraine “will never accept” U.S.- Russia decisions made without its participation.

Simultaneously, Rubio pushed Saudi leaders to support President Trump’s contentious Gaza plan, which proposes relocating Palestinians and U.S.-led reconstruction.

Saudi Arabia and other Arab nations rejected the proposal, advocating instead for Gulf-backed reconstruction tied to Palestinian statehood.

European leaders has called emergency talks in Paris, alarmed by their exclusion from both Ukraine and Gaza discussions.