With Ukraine summit, Saudi Arabia boasts mediator role, courts West

August 5, 2023 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, announced last week that officials from several Western and major developing countries would convene in the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah this weekend to discuss Kyiv’s peace plan to end the war in his country. Among those who have been invited are representatives of 30 countries, include US and European ministers and diplomats along with their counterparts from Brazil, China, India and South Africa. Notably, Russia will not attend the talks, and the Kremlin said Monday that it needed to learn more about the purpose of the meeting…