Rubio says ‘progress but ways to go’ in efforts to end Russia-Ukraine war

US top diplomat’s remarks come as Ukraine negotiators travel to US for new round of talks on ending the conflict.

The top United States diplomat says progress has been made in efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war, but more work is needed, as Ukrainian officials travelled to the US for a new round of negotiations.

Speaking during a year-end news conference in Washington, DC, on Friday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington is not trying to impose a deal on either side.

Recommended Stories

• list 1 of 3EU agrees on $105bn loan to support Ukraine’s defence against Russia
• list 2 of 3Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 1,394
• list 3 of 3EU agrees hefty $105bn Ukraine loan without using Russian assets

“What we are trying to figure out here is what can Ukraine live with and what can Russia live with and … see if we can drive them towards each other and some sort of agreement,” he said.

“I think we’ve made progress, but we have a ways to go, and obviously, the hardest issues are always the last issues.”

Rubio’s remarks come as Ukrainian peace negotiators were set to start a new round of talks with US officials on Friday on proposals for ending the nearly four-year war with Russia.

The head of Kyiv’s delegation, Rustem Umerov, who is in the US for the talks, said on the Telegram messaging app that Ukraine’s European partners would be involved.

“We are constructively minded. We have already held preliminary consultations with our European colleagues and are preparing for further discussions with the American side,” Umerov said.

“Ukraine’s security must be guaranteed reliably and in the long term,” he added.

Since returning to office in January, US President Donald Trump has launched a major diplomatic push to end the conflict, but negotiations have been tense over sharply conflicting demands from Moscow and Kyiv.

White House envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, held talks in Berlin with Ukrainian and European officials earlier this week.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that Ukraine and the US had agreed on several documents, including a 20-point peace framework, and security guarantees and a reconstruction plan for Ukraine.

But he said that no final proposals had been agreed, adding that territorial issues remained unresolved.

Putin’s demands

For his part, Russian President Vladimir Putin has demanded Ukraine cede all territory in four key regions his forces have captured and occupied, along with Crimea, which Moscow seized and annexed in 2014.

Putin also wants Ukrainian troops to withdraw from parts of eastern Ukraine that Russian forces have not yet taken in the eastern Donetsk region, where fighting remains attritional – conditions Kyiv has rejected outright.

On Friday, in his “Results of the year” speech in Moscow, Putin blamed Zelenskyy for refusing to discuss territorial concessions – a key requirement from the Kremlin to end the war.

The Ukrainian leader has said in recent days that Kyiv will not give up territory, and the nation’s constitution also forbids it.

But Zelenskyy has indicated that Kyiv was prepared to drop its long-held ambition of joining the North Atlantic Treaty Alliance (NATO) in exchange for Western security guarantees.

While the Kremlin welcomed the decision, fighting on the ground continues.

On Friday, Rubio noted that wars generally end one of two ways: When one side surrenders or when the parties agree to a negotiated settlement.

“We don’t see surrender any time in the near future, and only a negotiated settlement can end this war,” said the US secretary of state, adding that any decision about ending the war will be up to Ukraine and Russia.