Watch live: White House holds briefing as Trump’s Russia-Ukraine rhetoric draws scrutiny

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt will address the press Thursday afternoon as scrutiny mounts over President Trump’s moves to negotiate an end to the nearly three-year war between Russia and Ukraine.

The briefing comes after Trump suggested Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is a “dictator” and accused the war-torn country of starting the war with Russia. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other administration officials met with Russian leaders in Saudi Arabia earlier this week to begin peace talks, notably leaving Ukraine out of the discussion.

The efforts have sparked concern on both sides of the aisle and abroad.

National security adviser Mike Waltz, who joined Rubio at the meeting in Riyadh, and policy adviser Stephen Miller are expected to join Leavitt at the briefing.

The event is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. EST.

Watch the live video above.