US awaits Russia’s response to 30-day ceasefire proposal in Ukraine conflict

The United States is waiting for Russia's response to its proposal for a 30-day ceasefire as part of efforts to ease tensions in the ongoing conflict with Ukraine.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed the anticipation, stating that Russia's position on the proposal remains unclear, Caliber.Az reports citing Reuters.

Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov addressed the situation, cautioning against jumping to conclusions regarding the ceasefire. "You are getting a little bit ahead of yourself, we don't want to do that," Peskov remarked, emphasizing that Moscow requires more information before making any decisions.

Peskov added that on March 11, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz assured that details of the ongoing negotiations with Ukraine in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, would be relayed to Russia through various diplomatic channels. Moscow is awaiting this information before formulating its response.

Russian and US officials have also scheduled meetings in the coming days to discuss the outcome of the Jeddah talks. Moscow is expecting to receive full details about the discussions between US and Ukrainian representatives.

The negotiations in Jeddah, held on March 11, lasted approximately 9.5 hours. Following the talks, a joint statement was published on the website of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in which Ukraine expressed its willingness to accept the US proposal for a temporary 30-day ceasefire. In exchange, the US would resume intelligence support and lift the pause in assistance to Kyiv.

The discussions also resulted in an agreement to finalize a comprehensive deal on developing critical mineral resources in Ukraine to bolster the country’s economy. Ukrainian presidential office head Andriy Yermak stated that the agreement would be signed once the US deemed it appropriate.

On March 12, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibyha announced that Kyiv is ready to establish a working group to explore the potential ceasefire further. He also confirmed that US representatives would be in direct contact with Russia to move forward on the proposal.