The United States has received clear signals for the first time from the Russian Federation regarding potential conditions to end its full-scale war against Ukraine.
According to Ukrinform, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said this in an interview with Fox Business Network following White House special envoy Steve Witkoff’s talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
“I think for the first time, perhaps since this administration began, we have some concrete examples of the kinds of things that Russia would ask for in order to end the war,” Rubio said, without disclosing the Kremlin’s specific demands. “Obviously the Ukrainians have a say in this. We got to bring the two sides and the two positions close enough so that the ultimate closer, President Trump, can get involved and make it happen.”
According to Rubio, after an update from Witkoff, Trump held consultations with several European leaders, updated them on the talks, and initiated preparations for the next phase.
“If things continue to progress, an opportunity will present itself very soon for the President to meet with both Vladimir Putin and President [Volodymyr] Zelensky at some point here, hopefully in the near future,” Rubio said. “But obviously, a lot has to happen before that can occur.”
He added that he does not know whether such meetings might occur as soon as next week, noting that “there’s still many impediments to overcome, and we hope to do that over the next few days and hours – weeks maybe.”
Rubio said that the core of the discussions revolves around a ceasefire, which must eventually become part of the peace process.
“At some point, a ceasefire has to be part of the process, because it’s hard to negotiate the details of a final peace agreement while you’re shooting at each other,” he said.
However, there should “enough of an outline of how the war is going to end, that then ideally puts you into a ceasefire position for a short period of time and you use that time to finalize an end to the war,” Rubio said. “But I do think you’ve got to come a long way in understanding how you end the war.”
Rubio acknowledged that a key sticking point involves territorial issues, referencing Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea and subsequent occupation of other parts of Ukraine.
“There’s going to have to be concessions by the Russians and by the Ukrainians of course,” he said. “On the Ukrainian side, they’ve paid an enormous price in this war […] and those concessions aren’t easy.”
When asked whether Witkoff had traveled to Moscow with a ceasefire proposal, Rubio said: “Yes,” adding, however, that “the specific timing is not discussed.”
“I think what we have is a better understanding of the conditions under which Russia would be willing to end the war. We now have to compare that to what the Ukrainians and our European allies, but the Ukrainians primarily, of course, are willing to accept. And what you try to see is how far can you get these two positions closer? How can you get these two positions closer to each other?” he said.
At the same time, Rubio said no decision has yet been made regarding secondary sanctions against Russia, expected on Friday.
“That’s a decision the President will need to make here over the next 24 to 36 hours. A lot of it will depend on how talks – the works we’re going to be doing over the next couple of days, progress. […] He’ll have to make that decision by Friday,” Rubio added.
Earlier, Trump called Witkoff’s Wednesday meeting with Putin “very productive,” claiming it had resulted in “great progress.”
Trump also said there was a good chance that both Zelensky and Putin will agree to a joint meeting in the near future.
Photo: Official State Department
Source: Washington receives first clear signals from Russia on conditions to end war – Rubio
