Speaking to reporters, Rubio said the United States is “the
only country in the world” capable of serving as a catalyst for talks between
Kyiv and Moscow.
According to him, if Washington steps back from that role,
no one else will be able to fill it.
“The United Nations will not do it. France will not do it.
The European Union will not do it. The Russians will not even talk to them. So
we do not want to walk away from this — we understand that in the end the war
in Ukraine has no military solution,” the secretary of state said.
He also noted that U.S. President Donald Trump has expressed
“deep frustration” that the war is still ongoing.
Rubio said Trump has invested “a lot of political capital”
in efforts to resolve the war.
The secretary added that negotiators have made progress in
“narrowing the range of issues,” but in his view, some topics remain “very
complex.”
Another round of trilateral talks among Ukraine, the United
States and Russia concluded on Feb. 18 in Geneva, Switzerland. Ukrainian
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the negotiations were difficult and that
progress had been achieved only on military matters. In particular, the sides
resolved the issue of monitoring a ceasefire, which will take place with U.S. participation.
According to Axios, the talks “reached a deadlock” due to
Russia’s position. U.S. presidential envoy Steve Witkoff said the meetings “led
to significant progress.”
Ukraine’s presidential chief of staff Kyrylo Budanov said
the trilateral talks in Geneva were difficult but important and announced new
meetings in the near future. The head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir
Medinsky, described the discussions as “complex but businesslike.”
On Feb. 25, Zelenskyy said the next trilateral meeting of the
negotiating teams of Ukraine, the United States and Russia will take place in
early March.