Riyadh talks: Zelensky highlights differences between Ukraine's, Russia's positions

Following meetings in Riyadh, the fifth point in the Ukraine-U.S. statement will focus on the return of children, prisoners of war, and civilian detainees, whereas in the Russian statement, it will pertain to port operations and the transportation of agricultural products.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said this at a press briefing on Tuesday, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.

"There will be two statements based on the agreements -- one between Ukraine and the United States and a separate U.S.-Russia statement. Why? Because they differ slightly," he said.

Zelensky clarified that the fifth point of the statements differs between the Ukrainian-American and Russian-American versions. In Ukraine's statement, it addresses U.S. assistance in returning children, military personnel, and civilian detainees, while Russia's version focuses on economic issues.

"This was not part of our agenda before the meeting. The Russians raised the issue, as far as we know, of U.S. assistance in transporting their agricultural products, including discussions on ports, tariffs, etc. We refused to include this in our joint document, as we consider it a weakening of positions and sanctions," Zelensky said.

He also said that the Ukrainian side is unaware of the exact details of the fifth point agreed upon by Russia and the U.S.

On March 24, the first round of negotiations between Ukraine and the U.S. took place in Saudi Arabia. President Zelensky described the meeting as constructive.

Later that day, U.S. and Russian delegations held discussions that lasted over 12 hours.

Another round of Ukraine-U.S. talks took place on March 25.