AA / Washington / Rabia iclal Turan
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Sunday that the coming week would be “crucial” for negotiations between Russia and Ukraine and that the parties are not yet “close enough” to reach an agreement.
“Things have to start moving (…) I think the coming week will be crucial,” said Rubio during an interview with the Meet The Press show of the NBC channel.
Rubio said the Trump administration had made “real progress” in its efforts to end this conflict that has been going on for over three years, but warned that the “last stages” were the most difficult to cross.
“It has to happen quickly. We cannot continue to devote time and resources to this effort if it does not bear fruit, “he added.
According to Rubio, the administration must soon decide if it remains actively involved in the negotiations or if it is refocused on other priorities.
-“If the negotiations do not succeed, as a nation-nation, there are options available to us for those whom we consider responsible for not wanting peace. But we prefer not to happen at this stage, because we think it closes the door to diplomacy, “he added.
“Last week, it was a question of determining how close the two parties are and if they are enough for us to continue to invest our time as a mediator,” he added.
Rubio’s words were made after President Donald Trump met the Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday in Rome, where the two men attended the funeral of Pope Francis. The United States and Ukraine qualified this “productive” meeting.
Trump then wrote on Truth Social: “It makes me think that maybe he [Poutine] does not want to stop war, he only licks me with speech, and must be treated differently, through ‘banks’ or ‘secondary sanctions’ … Too many people are dying !!! »»
*Translated from English by Mourad Belhaj
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