U.S. and Russian officials are due to meet in Saudi Arabia this week to discuss possible negotiations on securing a peace deal to end the war in Ukraine.

The discussions would take place in the Saudi capital of Riyadh on Tuesday, according to a Russian newspaper. Representatives of President Donald Trump's administration will include U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Trump's national security advisor Mike Waltz, and White House Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff, Reuters has reported. It was not yet clear who Russia would send to the meeting.

Media reports have suggested that the high-level in-person talks -- the first of this kind between U.S. and Russian officials in years -- could be a precursor to a possible face-to-face meeting between Trump and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy noted that that Kyiv was not invited to the talks in Saudi Arabia, while Ukraine's European allies have voiced concerns that they may be frozen out of the negotiations.

For financial markets, analysts have noted that a Russia-Ukraine peace deal and a subsequent easing of sanctions on Russian energy could have implications on global oil supply flows, although indications of solid near-term demand have helped keep crude prices steady.