U.S., Russia agree to work toward ending Ukraine war, after holding first peace talks without Ukraine

In Saudi Arabia back on Tuesday.

Talks between the top diplomats of the U.S. and Russia on ending the latter's invasion of Ukraine lasted well over four hours.

Our foreign affairs correspondent Bae Eun-ji reports.

Top diplomats of the United States and Russia held talks in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, marking their first formal meeting aimed at ending the Ukraine war, since it began three years ago.

Following the meeting that lasted around 4 and a half hours, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that he's convinced Russia is willing to engage in a "serious process" of ending the conflict and said this was the first step of a long and difficult journey.

"In order to bring an end to any conflict, there has to be concessions made by all sides."

Rubio's Russian counterpart described the conversation as "useful," but said his country will not accept NATO troops in Ukraine as part of any peace deal.

"We explained today that the presence of troops from NATO countries under a foreign flag, under the flag of the European Union, or under national flags, it does not change anything. This is, of course, unacceptable to us."

The two countries said they agreed to hold more talks , and added they will appoint 'high-level teams' to begin working on a path to ending the war as soon as possible.

Following the talks, Rubio held phone calls with his counterparts from the UK, France, Germany, and Italy in an apparent move to reassure the European countries over concerns that they may have no place in the peace negotiations.

Meanwhile, as Ukraine was not invited to Tuesday's peace talks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said negotiations to end the war in Ukraine should not take place "behind the backs of" the parties involved.

"You can talk about anything, but no decision can be made without Ukraine on how to end the war in Ukraine. We were not invited to this meeting – the U.S.-Russia meeting in Saudi Arabia -it was a surprise for us, as well as for many."

In response, U.S. President Donald Trump dismissed Kyiv's concern about being left out, and almost suggested that Ukraine was to blame for a war that began only after Russia's invasion.

"But today I heard, well, 'we weren't invited.' Well, you've been there for three years. You should have ended it three years. You should have never started it. You could have made a deal."

Trump also hinted that he may meet Russian President Vladimir Putin very soon.

As he walked out of the press conference in Mar-a-Lago, he answered "probably," when asked if he's still expected to meet Putin before the end of this month.

Bae Eun-ji, Arirang News.