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Senior US and Russian officials meet in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday to begin preliminary talks on ending the three-year war in Ukraine with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders scrambling to stay included. The meeting represents a shift from the international isolation imposed on Russia since the start of its war on Ukraine in the wake of US President Donald Trump’s recent overtures towards the Kremlin. Follow our live blog for all the latest developments.
Talks between top US and Russian officials in Riyadh on Tuesday could pave the way for a possible summit between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
An emergency summit of European leaders in Paris on Monday discussed a cohesive strategy on Ukraine that will include increased defence spending and taking the lead in providing security guarantees for Ukraine.
US businesses have lost $300 billion since leaving Russia, Russian wealth fund chief says
Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, speaks to journalists at the Ritz Carlton hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Baraa Anwer)
The head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund Kirill Dmitriev said on Tuesday in Riyadh that US businesses have lost $300 billion due to leaving Russia.
Talks between Russian and US officials are important, Dmitriev said, ahead of the start of US-Russian talks in Riyadh, the first high-level, in-person discussions in years between the two sides.
Defence stocks soar on back of bump in European defence spending
European futures hit record peaks on Tuesday as defence stocks soared on expectations of a spending bump.
On Monday, the pan-European STOXX 600 index closed 0.5% higher as a gauge of defence and aerospace stocks surged 4.6% to lifetime peaks, having already more than doubled in value since Russia invaded Ukraine three years ago.
Investors expect earnings in the industry to continue to rise strongly, reckoning a long era of modest defence budgets has ended and a rush to buy arms is beginning.
“If European defence spending gets anywhere near Trump’s 5% of GDP target, European defence companies like Rheinmetall, SAAB, BAE Systems, Thyssenkrupp, and Thales can extend considerably their overnight gains,” said Tony Sycamore, analyst at IG Markets in Sydney.
Russian sovereign wealth chief praises Trump as ‘problem solver’
The head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund on Tuesday described US President Donald Trump as a problem solver ahead of US-Russian talks in Saudi Arabia in what are expected to be the most significant discussions between the two former Cold War foes on ending Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
“We really see that President Trump and his team is a team of problem solvers, people who have already addressed a number of big challenges very swiftly, very efficiently and very successfully,” Kirill Dmitriev told reporters in Riyadh.
‘Everyone feels a great sense of urgency’, Dutch PM says
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP, and Reuters)
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