Via Simon Lewis in reuters.com: Russia said Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will hold talks with top U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, on Tuesday that will focus on ending the war in Ukraine and restoring the whole complex of Russia-U.S. ties. Rubio arrived in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Monday on a previously planned trip. U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, who are set to arrive later on Monday, will be joining him at the talks with the Russians. The talks will be among the first high-level, in-person discussions in years between Russian and U.S. officials and are meant to precede a meeting between the U.S. and Russian presidents. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Lavrov and Yuri Ushakov, a foreign policy advisor to President Vladimir Putin, would fly to the Saudi capital Riyadh on Monday. Riyadh, which is also involved in talks with Washington over the future of the Gaza Strip, has played a role in early contacts between the Trump administration, which took office on January 20, and Moscow, helping to secure a prisoner swap last week.
