US Secretary of State and interim National Security Advisor Marco Rubio described how while the United States remains committed to ending Ukraine's war, it knows there are a multitude of other global concerns.
"We're not going to abandon it. But at some point, President Donald Trump has to choose how much additional time and effort the highest levels of our government are going to devote to this issue," Rubio said during a Fox News interview.
He also repeated that although the war in Ukraine is significant, issues such as China's ascension and Iran's nuclear ambition are more significant in the long run. "Even more important things are happening around the world. Not that a war in Ukraine is not important, but I would say what is happening with China is more important in the long run. Iran's nuclear ambitions, as well as many other things around the world, need our focus," Rubio stated.
Rubio noted that while Washington comprehends both Moscow and Kyiv's positions, they remain at odds, albeit somewhat closer than before. "They're closer, but still quite far apart. It’s going to take a substantial breakthrough soon to make progress, or else the President will have to decide how much more time we’ll dedicate to this issue," he added.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, late last week, called Rubio, and he emphasized the necessity of the toughening of the preconditions for the start of peace negotiations over Ukraine, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry.
The conversation was focused on the Ukraine crisis. Following the April 25 meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US Special Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff, both the Secretary of State and the foreign minister highlighted the importance of supporting the emerging conditions to launch talks for reaching a lasting peace," the statement further said.
The statement also added that both sides had a productive exchange on key aspects of Russia-US political debate, which has moved quickly in the recent span. Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov earlier indicated that President Putin is willing to begin negotiations with Ukraine without any preconditions.
Russian Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov also added that the three-hour meeting between Putin and Witkoff on April 25 was "constructive and quite useful."
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