Worthy Christian News > World News > US, Russia Talk About Maritime Truce As Attacks Continue In Ukraine (Worthy News In-Depth)

US, Russia Talk About Maritime Truce As Attacks Continue In Ukraine (Worthy News In-Depth)

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

RIYADH/KYIV/BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – U.S. and Russian delegates wrapped up a day of tense talks on a plan for a ceasefire at sea between Kyiv and Moscow, even as a Russian missile strike in Ukraine wounded scores of people.

Washington hoped Monday’s talks in Saudi Arabia would help pave the way for a broader peace deal to end Europe’s biggest land war since World War Two.

The White House says an initial maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea would allow the free flow of shipping, though the area has not been the location of intense military operations in recent months.

It would also enable Russia and Ukraine to transport much-needed grain to hungry nations more easily.

It was unclear if the talks would swiftly result in a new agreement or if they were designed to give the sides cover to discuss a broader agenda. “This is primarily about the safety of navigation,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, noting that an earlier agreement on Black Sea shipping brokered in 2022 and failed to deliver what it had promised Moscow.

Last week, Moscow already agreed not to attack energy infrastructure in Ukraine over 30 days, with Kyiv pledging similar measures.

MINERALS DEAL

U.S. President Donald J. Trump negotiated the partial ceasefire with the Russian and Ukrainian leaders in separate phone calls and also expressed hope for a minerals deal with Ukraine.

Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zekenskyy had an unprecedented public quarrel at the Oval Office but have since mended fences.

Additionally, Trump told reporters at the White House that the U.S. is talking to Ukraine about the potential for American firms to own Ukrainian power plants.

While he is against military “boots on the ground,” Trump believes that American involvement in Ukraine could serve as a deterrence against Russian aggression.

Yet while U.S.-Russian ceasefire talks continued in the luxurious Ritz-Carlton hotel in Riyadh, with a Ukrainian delegation on the sidelines, the horrors of war continued.

Even as the meeting was underway in Saudi Arabia, where a Ukrainian delegation was present on the sidelines, a Russian missile strike reportedly damaged a school and a hospital in Ukraine’s north-eastern city of Sumy.

SCORES INJURED

Ukrainian officials said the attack wounded at least 74 people, including 13 children.

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced Sunday that three people, “including a father and his 5-year-old daughter,” were killed by a Russian drone attack on Kyiv, the capital, while an attack on the city of Zaporizhia Saturday killed a family of three.

“Moscow speaks of peace while carrying out brutal strikes on densely populated residential areas in major Ukrainian cities,” the country’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, said. “Instead of making hollow statements about peace, Russia must stop bombing our cities and end its war on civilians.”

However, Ukraine also launched a drone attack Monday against an oil pumping station in the Russian city Krasnodar, Russian officials said, despite agreeing not to attack such installations for 30 days.

There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Despite the clashes, the U.S. delegation was due to shuttle between the two countries to finalize details and negotiate separate measures to ensure the safety of shipping in the Black Sea.

PERMANENT CEASEFIRE?

“The ultimate goal is a 30-day ceasefire, during which time we discuss a permanent ceasefire. We’re not far away from that,” said the U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff over the weekend.

Critics say Moscow appears to be exploiting the window before any broader truce, launching mass drone attacks on Ukraine on Monday.

There is also concern in Kyiv that Russia will use a more extensive ceasefire to regroup its military and launch more attacks against Ukraine.

However, Ukraine’s army claims to have recaptured a small village in the eastern region of Luhansk – a rare success for its forces in an area almost entirely occupied by Russia since its 2022 invasion of the country.

Kyiv officials said troops had “liberated the village of Nadia” over the weekend after a 30-hour operation, during which its soldiers retook about one square mile (2.6 square kilometers) of territory.

Its military did not provide details about casualties or the strategic significance of the village.

SMALL GAINS

Ukraine’s forces reportedly made small gains across the war’s eastern front in recent weeks after suffering significant setbacks in Russia’s Kursk region.

Kyiv had entered parts of Kursk hoping to improve its position during peace negotiations.

Yet observers say a Russian offensive has stalled due to “a mix of poor weather and troop exhaustion.”

Trump has made clear his goal is to silence the weapons on both sides completely.

He seeks to end a war that is believed to have killed and injured some 1 million people, many of them young soldiers whose lives had just begun.