US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that future security guarantees for Ukraine must be acceptable not only to Kyiv but also to Moscow. According to him, without Russia's consent, such a mechanism cannot work within the framework of a peaceful settlement.
Rubio said this on November 9 while speaking with journalists on the sidelines of the G7 foreign ministers' meeting in Paris.
"It is necessary to understand that Ukraine must feel safe after the war. And, obviously, this must be something that Russia also agrees with so that such guarantees can work", - stressed the US Secretary of State.
He emphasized that Ukraine's future security system will be one of the defining elements of the negotiations on ending the war.
"Security guarantees will be crucial for Ukraine to be able to agree to something. But at the same time, it must also be acceptable to Russia", - added Rubio.
At the same time, the Secretary of State acknowledged that there is no final plan for security guarantees yet. According to him, the negotiators discussed various concepts of post-war protection for Ukraine, but a specific mechanism has not yet been agreed upon.
When asked about the possibility of providing Ukraine with guarantees similar to Articles 4 or 5 of the NATO treaty, Rubio did not confirm Washington's readiness to assume such obligations.
At the same time, he did not rule out that American guarantees could be formalized by a separate international treaty. However, according to Rubio, the negotiations have not yet reached that level of detail. In addition, he drew attention to the difficulty of ratifying international treaties in the US Senate.
Separately, the Secretary of State commented on the prospects for trilateral negotiations between Ukraine, Russia, and the US in Abu Dhabi. He acknowledged that previous diplomatic efforts did not bring the expected result, but the Donald Trump administration intends to continue attempts to reach agreements.
According to Rubio, the United States remains effectively the only country capable of bringing representatives of Kyiv and Moscow to the same table. At the same time, he stressed that a quick end to the war should not be expected.
Rubio also said that the US cannot guarantee the success of peace negotiations, since it is not a party to the war. He reminded that Russia is waging a war against Ukraine, which has suffered an invasion and continues to suffer attacks.
"We can only act as mediators in the negotiations and offer ideas in hopes of reaching a diplomatic solution", - explained the Secretary of State.
He added that the final cessation of hostilities depends on agreements between the participants in the war themselves. At the same time, Washington will continue diplomatic efforts, as the US President has made ending the Russian-Ukrainian war one of his priorities.
Rubio also spoke in favor of the possibility of direct negotiations between European states and Russia. According to him, the US does not object to such a format, but previously Moscow did not show readiness for it.
He reported that representatives of Germany, the United Kingdom, and France are already in Abu Dhabi, although at that time they did not directly participate in the trilateral talks.
Recall that on November 10-11, negotiations between Ukraine, the US, and Russia are planned in Abu Dhabi, which are to become the first in such a format after the February break. Among the key issues are post-war security guarantees, territorial disputes, and possible mechanisms for cessation of hostilities.
Based on materials from: US State Department transcript, AFP, Deutsche Welle
