Negotiations without Ukraine won't lead to peace deal, says Zelenskyy

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said talks between the US and Russia will "yield no results" because of his country's absence from the negotiations, and that he will not accept the outcome of any arrangements made.

Speaking on Monday during a trip to the United Arab Emirates, Zelenskyy said he had not been invited to this week's discussions between Washington and Moscow in Saudi Arabia.

The talks, which follow a 90-minute conversation last week between Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, are due to begin on Tuesday.

Russia will be represented by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and by Putin's foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov.

Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio will lead the US delegation. He will be supported by Mike Waltz, the national security adviser, and by Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff.

Speaking on Fox News Channel's 'Sunday Morning Futures' programme, Witkoff said he and Waltz will be "having meetings at the direction of the president."

The US delegation hopes to make "some really good progress with regard to Russia-Ukraine," he added.

During last week's phone call between Trump and Putin, both presidents agreed to start negotiations immediately in an attempt to end the almost three-year conflict in Ukraine.

Shortly after his conversation with Putin, Trump spoke with Zelenskyy. On Sunday, the US president said the Ukrainian leader "will be involved" in peace discussions, but he did not elaborate further.

Does Europe have a seat at the table?

Speaking to journalists on a conference call from the United Arab Emirates, Zelenskyy said "the question is not about 'What Ukraine can give?', but 'What Ukraine can receive?'. It is very important for us. We are very interested indeed in signing an agreement with the United States of America."

The Ukrainian president added that Kyiv received offers from Europe already, but that the United States is their "biggest strategic partner."

Last week's phone call between Trump and Putin had left European countries shocked, as securing a seat at the table for negotiations has been a top priority for EU leaders.

Speaking at the Munich Security Conference on Friday, Zelenskyy said he would travel to the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. These trips are unrelated to peace negotiations, he noted.

Zelenskyy will travel on Monday to Turkey, where he will meet the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. He will then travel to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday.