Rubio cancels Ukraine meeting with European leaders in Munich, FT reports
Photo: Marco Rubio, US Secretary of State (Getty Images)
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio canceled at the last minute a meeting with the leaders of three European countries. They were supposed to discuss Ukraine on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, the Financial Times reports.
Read also: Rubio expects meeting: Possible talks with Zelenskyy at Munich Security Conference
According to the outlet, Rubio was scheduled to meet with the leaders of Germany, Poland, and Finland, as well as representatives of the European Commission. However, he canceled the meeting due to scheduling conflicts.
According to an unnamed US official, the Secretary of State would not take part in the Berlin-format meeting on Ukraine because of the large number of meetings taking place at the same time. He is discussing the Russia-Ukraine issue in many of his meetings in Munich, the official added.
At the same time, an unnamed European official described the cancellation as crazy. A second official told the FT that without Rubio’s participation, the meeting lacked substantive content.
Later, Rubio did hold talks with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. A German official said that Ukraine was the central topic of discussion. They also spoke about the state of negotiations with Russia and continued support for Kyiv, including military aid.
They also discussed NATO and Europe’s role in the alliance. According to the German official, Rubio praised Germany’s efforts to strengthen the military alliance.
After Munich, Rubio will travel to Budapest for a meeting with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
A senior US State Department official said the visit to Hungary is aimed at further strengthening ties with the European country, which, unlike the EU mainstream, shares the Trump administration’s vision for peace in Ukraine.
Trump expects action from Zelenskyy
Earlier today, February 13, US President Donald Trump called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to act regarding the peace process.
According to Trump, the Ukrainian leader could now lose the opportunity to bring the war to an end.
