Putin ready to meet Zelenskyy, says US Secretary of State Marco Rubio
The US Secretary of State told Fox News that the fact Russian President Putin is willing to talk to his Ukrainian counterpart is 'a big deal'
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that Russian President Vladimir Putin has told his US counterpart Donald Trump that he was ready to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Speaking to Fox News on Monday (August 18), Rubio said that the very fact that people were now talking to each other since the Russia-Ukraine war started three and a half years ago, was not happening earlier.
“But just the fact that Putin is saying, sure, I’ll meet with Zelenskyy – that’s a big deal. I mean, I’m not saying they’re going to leave that room as best friends. I’m not saying they’re going to leave that room with a peace deal,” said Rubio.
“But I think the fact that people are now talking to each other, this wasn’t happening for three and a half years. This was a stalemated war of death and destruction,” he added.
As Ukraine’s demand for a security guarantee from European allies and the US, despite not being inducted in NATO, Rubio said, following the war with Russia, Ukraine has the right to enter into security arrangements with other countries.
Ukraine has right to get security guarantee
“And so I think everyone would acknowledge – including, by the way, for the first time the Russian side under President Trump’s sort of pressure or suggestion – is that in fact a Ukraine post-conflict has a right to enter into security agreements with other countries,” said Rubio.
He also said that the US would work with its European allies and non-European countries to “build” such a security guarantee.
He also said that the Ukrainian leadership has told the US that the “strongest security guarantee” they can get is to get a stronger military in future.
“We’re no longer giving Ukraine weapons. We’re no longer giving Ukraine money. We are now selling them weapons, and European countries are paying for it through NATO. They are using NATO to buy the weapons and transfer them to Ukraine,” said Rubio.
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‘Nothing was done earlier’
Taking a veiled dig at the Biden administration, Rubio said that nothing was done earlier, even though the war has been raging for three and a half years.
“But nothing was happening in this war, literally. The only option that we were given under the previous administration was to continue to fund Ukraine for however much they need for however long it takes, and now you have people actually talking about pathways towards ending it,” said Rubio.
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On European leaders
He also said that all the European leaders who came with Zelenskyy said that “after three years of sort of deadlock and no talks and no change in circumstances, this is the first time where there seems to be some movement.”
Earlier on Tuesday (August 19) Trump posted on Truth Social, stating, “At the conclusion of the meetings, I called President Putin, and began the arrangements for a meeting, at a location to be determined, between President Putin and President Zelenskyy. After that meeting takes place, we will have a Trilat, which would be the two Presidents, plus me.”