Joint Statement Following the Meeting of the Delegations of Ukraine and the United States in Jeddah
(OPU ). — On March 11, 2025, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, under the gracious hospitality of Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman, the United States and Ukraine took important steps towards restoring a lasting peace in Ukraine.
Representatives of both countries highly appreciated the courage of the Ukrainian people in defending their state and agreed that now is the time to begin the process of establishing a lasting peace.
The Ukrainian delegation once again expressed deep gratitude on behalf of the Ukrainian people to President Trump, the U.S. Congress, and the people of the United States for enabling significant progress on the path to peace.
Ukraine expressed its readiness to accept the United States’ proposal for an immediate temporary, 30-day ceasefire, which could be extended by mutual consent of the parties, subject to acceptance and simultaneous implementation by the Russian Federation. The United States will convey to Russia that reciprocity from Russia is key to achieving peace.
The United States will immediately lift the pause in intelligence sharing and resume security assistance to Ukraine.
The delegations also discussed the importance of humanitarian efforts as part of the peace process, including during the aforementioned ceasefire, including the exchange of prisoners of war, the release of detained civilians, and the return of forcibly displaced Ukrainian children.
The two delegations agreed to identify the composition of their negotiating teams and to immediately begin negotiations to achieve a sustainable peace that will ensure the long-term security of Ukraine. The United States committed to discussing these specific proposals with Russian representatives. The Ukrainian delegation once again emphasized that European partners should be involved in the peace process.
Finally, the presidents of both countries agreed to conclude a comprehensive agreement on the development of Ukraine’s critical mineral resources as soon as possible in order to strengthen Ukraine’s economy and guarantee Ukraine’s long-term prosperity and security.
The head of the US State Department was presented with an icon on a box of ammunition
Marco Rubio received an unusual gift from Andriy Sybiga. On March 11, 2025, the Ukrainian and American delegations held meetings in Saudi Arabia. The key topic was the war in Ukraine. During the negotiations of the Ukrainian and American delegations in Jeddah, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Andriy Sybiga presented the head of the US State Department Marco Rubio with an icon of the Virgin Mary. The peculiarity of this icon is that it is made on a box of ammunition.
Icons on ammunition boxes is an art project by Kyiv artists Sofia Atlantova and Oleksandr Klymenko. Its main idea is to transform death, symbolized by the weapons box, into life, symbolized by the icon. The project was presented back in 2015 on the territory of Sofia Kyivska. Since then, icons painted on ammunition boxes from the war zone have been exhibited in 40 cities around the world at over 60 locations, including Washington, Berlin, Warsaw, Vienna, and Sicily.
Andriy Sybiga’s Facebook
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