Ukraine-Russia peace deal has to take sanctions into account, Rubio says

Sanctions imposed on Russia have to be taken into account in negotiations to end the Russia-Ukraine war, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said at a press conference.

Rubio was asked how long he expects negotiations for a final peace deal between Ukraine and Russia to last.

The secretary responded that the U.S. will work toward an agreement for "as long as it takes," but he cannot guarantee whether it will be reached in a week or a month.

"I just can't put a timeframe on it because it doesn't depend on us. It depends on the Russians and it depends on the Ukrainians. It also depends on our partners in Europe who have sanctions that will have to be taken into account, I believe, as part of any final deal," Rubio said.

According to him, the readiness for a peace agreement will be clear "when the time comes to sign" and if "there's still resistance from one side or the other," but "we're not at that stage yet."

• On March 25, another round of talks between U.S. and Ukrainian delegations concluded in Saudi Arabia. Defense Minister Umerov said that any movement of Russian warships beyond the eastern part of the Black Sea would be considered a violation of the ceasefire agreement at sea.
• Moscow has demanded the lifting of certain sanctions in exchange for agreeing to a ceasefire in the Black Sea.
• Rubio stated that the U.S. would consider Russia's demands after it had agreed "in principle" to a ceasefire in the Black Sea with Ukraine to ensure safe shipping. According to him, Russia's demands include lifting some European Union sanctions.