Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday expressed cautious optimism about the Kremlin’s commitment to brokering peace with Ukraine as the U.S. continues to press for an end to the war that’s stretched on for nearly three years.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov spoke with Rubio on Saturday and, per Rubio, Lavrov said Russia is in the process of drafting a ceasefire proposal.
“He communicated in our call, that they are, their side will be working on a series of ideas and requirements that they would have in order to move forward with a ceasefire and further negotiations,” Rubio said in an interview on CBS’s “Meet the Press.” “So we’ll await that, and hopefully it’s a document that is close enough to what the Ukrainians want to be able to get to that point and maybe work out those differences.”
“Are they tapping us along? Well, that’s what we’re trying to find out, and we’ll find out pretty soon,” Rubio added.
But the nation’s top diplomat stressed that the U.S. is in a new role as a possible peace accord starts to form.
“We’re no longer flying all over the world trying to set up meetings; we’re responding to meetings that are set up and we always said we’re willing to do whatever it takes to bring them together if the opportunities present themselves,” Rubio said.
President Trump repeatedly has voiced frustration over the stagnant talks and recently threatened harsher sanctions on Russia if progress isn’t made. He announced Saturday that he plans to speak separately with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday.
Zelensky spoke with Rubio and Vice President Vance on Sunday.
