U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited Paris, as he announced on social media platform X (Twitter) on the evening of April 17. According to him, the main goal of the visit is to seek “real, practical” solutions for ending the Russo-Ukrainian war. Accompanying Rubio are U.S. Special Representative for the Middle East Steve Vitkoff and Special Representative for Ukraine Keith Kellogg.
This is reported by Kyiv24
“Our primary task is to fulfill the goal of the U.S. President to end this war and stop unnecessary bloodshed,” Rubio stated.
Negotiations as Part of a Diplomatic Mission
Prior to the visit to Paris, the U.S. State Department announced that Marco Rubio, along with Steve Vitkoff, plans to hold talks with European colleagues from April 16 to 18. The main objective is to promote President Joe Biden’s idea of ending the war and stopping the bloodshed on Ukrainian territory.
Previously, Vitkoff had visited Russia several times for meetings with President Vladimir Putin. Rubio himself led the U.S. delegation during negotiations with Russia in Riyadh.
Moscow’s Position on Peace
Official Moscow claims it seeks peace, but on its own terms. According to their position, this entails Ukraine’s renunciation of the occupied Crimea and four regions that Moscow calls illegally annexed, as well as a refusal to join NATO and other concessions.
Also read: The Kremlin views the meeting in Paris as an opportunity to convey its position to Ukraine and Europeans.
Recently, former U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly stated that Russia needs to move from words to actions and demonstrate its commitment to peace. At the same time, he emphasized that the responsibility for the war lies not only with Russian President Vladimir Putin but also with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky and former U.S. President Joe Biden, who, in Trump’s view, did nothing to prevent it.