Rubio says Trump will decide this week on the ongoing war talks

Foreign Minister Marco Rubio said on Sunday that the Trump administration will decide this week whether it will continue to follow up a negotiation settlement in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine or to turn its attention to other matters.

“It will be very important,” said Mr. Rubio in “Meet The Press” this week. “We have to make a decision on whether this is an endeavor that we want to continue to participate in or whether the time has come to focus on some other issues that were not more important in some cases.”

“But we want to see that happening,” he added. “There are reasons for optimism, but there are reasons for realism, of course, as well. We are close, but we are not close enough.”

Mr. Rubio did not give more details about the conversations.

It was not clear whether what was meant by the timetable presented by pressure on Ukraine and Russia to agree to conclude direct discussions towards a deal, or whether President Trump and his aides are seriously thinking about walking away.

in Interview with CBS News “Face the Nation”, Sergey F. did not suggest. Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia, any imminent settlement. “We are ready to reach a deal,” he said. “But there are still some specific points-elements of this deal that must be set.”

Russia A barrage of missiles and drones fired at Kyiv Last Thursday, which killed at least 12 people, pushing unusually sharp criticism from Mr. Trump. Mr. Lavrov said in the interview, which was registered on the day of strikes, that Russia was still agreed on an American suggestion for a fully shooting for 30 days that the Ukrainians said they accepted.

The comments of Mr. Rubio came a day after Mr. Trump President Folodimir Zelinski met From Ukraine in the Vatican halls while both leaders were attending the funeral of Pope Francis. The assistants posted pictures of the two men sitting together in a conversation in the Church of St. Peter.

This was the first time that the two men have met personally since then An explosive oval office meeting In February, when Mr. Trump and Vice President JD VANCE reprimanded Mr. Zellinski in front of the correspondents, saying he had not shown enough gratitude.

Tensions erupted during the winter and spring, when Mr. Trump made statements in favor of President Vladimir Part. Putin from Russia. Mr. Trump also said he wanted to form economic partnerships with Russia, while he is also trying to pressure Ukraine in a deal with his management on extracting critical minerals.

In the meetings this month in Paris and London and in exchanges through the channels of the Allied, US and Ukrainian officials, including Mr. Rubio, discussed possible conditions for settling negotiations that include Russia and Crocked and combating proposals.

Many of the most controversial issues include the Trump administration’s insistence that The United States is aware of the Crimea as Russian lands Actual acceptance of the Russian occupation of many lands in eastern Ukraine, which was seized by the Army of Mr. Putin since 2014.

Mr. Trump also wants to announce that Ukraine cannot join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, at least under his watch.

After meeting Mr. Trump on Saturday, Mr. Zellinski thanked the US President in a post on social media and said that the meeting was “a very symbolic meeting that could become historic, if we achieve joint results.”

White House spokesman Stephen Cheung launched a “very fruitful”.

Another photo from Saturday showed Mr. Trump and Mr. Zellinski talking to President Emmanuel Macron of France and Kiir Starmer, Prime Minister of Britain. The French and British leaders have expressed an urgent need for the Allied countries to provide security guarantees for Ukraine in the event of a negotiating settlement, which is something that Mr. Zellinski says it is very important, but the Trump administration insists that the Europeans, not the Americans.

Mr. Zellinski said to the position of social media that he discussed security guarantees with Mr. Trump.

On Friday, Steve Whitchov, a special real estate businessman for Mr. Trump, Mr. Putin met in Moscow For three hours. After hearing the results of this meeting, Mr. Trump wrote on social media on Saturday: “A good day in talks and meetings with Russia and Ukraine. They are very close to the deal, and both sides now must meet, at very high levels,” to end it. “

Mr. Whitkov and Mr. Rubio had planned to attend a set of talks with Ukrainian officials in London last week, but they were canceled after Mr. Zellinski’s assistants objected to the main elements in the settlement proposal that the Americans submitted to the Ukrainian negotiations in Paris on April 17.

After the Paris talks, Mr. Rubio said the Trump administration He will decide “Within days if this is possible in the next few weeks.” At that time, he said that the United States “will need to move forward” if it is not possible to reach a compromise with all parties to end the war in Ukraine.