'I hope I'm wrong': Rubio skeptical about Ukraine-Russia peace talks
Photo: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (Getty Images)
The United States does not expect a breakthrough from the talks between Ukraine and Russia that are taking place in Türkiye. However, a face-to-face meeting between the US and Russian presidents could move the process forward, stated US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Sky News reports.
Rubio said he will meet tomorrow with Türkiye’s foreign minister and a Ukrainian delegation in Istanbul.
The meeting will follow expected direct negotiations between Ukrainian and Russian officials today, but the US Secretary of State noted that Washington currently doesn't have high expectations for these talks.
"It's my assessment that I don't think we're going to have a breakthrough here until the president (Trump - ed.) and President Putin interact directly on this topic," Rubio said.
At the same time, Rubio acknowledged that he could be wrong in his assessment of the talks.
"I hope I'm wrong. I hope I'm 100% wrong. I hope tomorrow the news says they've agreed a ceasefire. But it's not my assessment," the US Secretary of State said.
He added that after the talks in Istanbul conclude tomorrow, the United States will decide on the timeline for a possible meeting between Putin and Trump.
Negotiations in Türkiye
On the night of May 11, the Russian leader rejected a joint proposal by Ukraine, the EU, and the US to establish a temporary 30-day truce in Ukraine. Instead, he offered to meet with Ukraine in Türkiye.
Ukraine and its partners, including Trump, supported this proposal, and Zelenskyy said he was ready to meet with the Russian President in person in Türkiye.
However, as expected, Putin ignored the meeting with Zelenskyy and instead sent low-level officials to Istanbul. To be clear, this delegation was not even headed by the Russian Foreign Minister, but by Putin's aide Vladimir Medinsky, who had already participated in the negotiations in 2022.
Upon his arrival in Türkiye, Zelenskyy called the Russian delegation, which Vladimir Putin sent to the talks instead of himself, a sham.
Instead, Ukraine is represented at the highest level at the talks in Türkiye, with representatives of the Presidential Office, the Foreign Ministry, the military, and intelligence officers joining the delegation.
