He is expected to hold talks with Saudi officials on bilateral ties and regional cooperation, as well as push forward peace efforts in the region.

 

Riyadh is hosting on Tuesday talks on the Ukraine war ahead of a summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

 

Trump last week spoke to Putin by phone and ordered top officials to begin negotiations on the war, which he repeatedly vowed to end during his presidential campaign.

 

Rubio, who spoke by phone with his Russian counterpart Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Saturday, will meet Russian officials in Saudi Arabia alongside Trump's national security adviser Mike Waltz and White House Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, a US lawmaker and a source told Reuters. It was not immediately clear who they would meet from Russia.