US engaging Russia to assess commitment to end war – Rubio

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has clarified that recent meetings between American and Russian officials were not negotiations but rather an assessment of Russia's willingness to end the war in Ukraine, he said in an interview with Fox News.

"We were very clear with the Russians. There was no negotiation. We didn’t sit down over a map and start drawing lines. What we said is if you’re interested – we can’t do anything with you, we can’t cooperate with you economically, we can’t engage with you on a bunch of other things," said the diplomat.

He is convinced that the Russians want this cooperation, but it cannot happen until the war is over.

"And that was our point: If you want to have closer cooperation with the United States on a bunch of other issues around the world, both geopolitical and economic, that war has to end," Rubio stated.

Rubio stated that Washington is verifying Moscow's seriousness about ending the war, acting on the directive of President Donald Trump. 

He noted that the U.S. is the only country capable of stopping the war and that Trump is uniquely positioned to achieve this.

"Again, this is not about having confidence in the Russians. This is actions. Either they’re serious about stopping the war – and we’ll know that when we engage them. Pretty quickly we’ll know. If they’re making maximalist demands that they know can’t be met, then we know they’re not serious about it," said the state secretary.

This follows a meeting in Saudi Arabia on February 18, where the U.S. delegation sought to gauge Russia's readiness for meaningful negotiations.

Both nations agreed to establish negotiation groups focused on ending the war, although Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has stated that Ukraine will not recognize any agreements made without its involvement.