Rubio: potential Trump-Putin meeting contingent on progress in Ukraine peace talks
In an interview with American journalist Catherine Herridge on X, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that a potential meeting between U.S. and Russian Presidents, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, largely hinges on achieving progress in negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.
Rubio mentioned that he discussed the Trump-Putin meeting during talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on February 18 in Riyadh. He emphasized to Russian officials that "there will be no meeting until we know what it will entail," noting that meetings typically do not occur without a certain outcome or significant advancement.
Should the U.S. and Russia manage progress in negotiations to end the war in Ukraine, and a summit between Trump and Putin solidifies the deal, "everyone will have to hail President Trump as a peacemaker," Rubio concluded.
Despite Trump's remarks about possibly meeting Putin by the end of February, Rubio asserted that he "doesn't know" when this might happen. He indicated that the American president aims to assess Moscow's seriousness about exiting the war. According to Rubio, the only way to ascertain this is through direct engagement. An agreement reached during the discussions in Saudi Arabia entailed continuing dialogues for peace.
The February 18 discussions in Saudi Arabia’s capital included the prospect of a future U.S.-Russia presidential summit. It was also agreed to appoint negotiators from each side to thoroughly discuss ending the war in Ukraine.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov suggested that a meeting between Trump and Putin could take place by the end of the current month. Trump has also not ruled out a February meeting.