US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the first day of trilateral talks between Ukraine, the US and Russia in Abu Dhabi productive, but warned that a quick peace agreement should not be expected. According to him, the parties still have a significant amount of work to do.
Rubio said this while talking to journalists on November 10 in Paris, where a meeting of G7 foreign ministers is taking place.
The head of US diplomacy said that shortly before his remarks he received information about the progress of the talks in the United Arab Emirates. He assessed the first results of the meeting positively.
“The talks in Abu Dhabi appear to have been very productive. Of course, there is still a lot of work ahead. This is not an issue that can be resolved within the next 24 hours,” — Rubio emphasized.
The secretary of state paid special attention to the participation of European countries in the further negotiation process. According to him, US representatives Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are working closely with European partners, who are also present in Abu Dhabi.
Rubio noted that Washington intends to eventually expand the current trilateral format so that representatives of European countries can directly participate in discussing the conditions for ending the war.
“Our goal is to expand the trilateral format so that not only the United States, Ukraine and Russia are represented at the negotiating table, but also the Europeans,” — he stated.
However, the secretary of state did not name specific timelines for the possible joining of European delegations to the main talks.
Journalists also asked Rubio how serious the Russian side is about ending the war. The head of the State Department did not claim that Moscow is ready for a peace agreement.
“That is exactly what we are checking,” — he replied.
At the same time, Rubio positively assessed the very fact of Russian representatives participating in the meeting. He noted that Moscow agreed to the trilateral format and sent its delegation to Abu Dhabi.
Talks between Ukraine, the US and Russia resumed on November 10 after a long pause. The first day of the meeting lasted about four hours. Security guarantees, the parties' demands and possible steps to end the war were discussed.
Earlier, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had received a report from the Ukrainian negotiating team. The head of state also called the first day of meetings constructive and quite substantive.
According to Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian delegation received instructions regarding the continuation of negotiations and further coordination with American and European partners.
The main trilateral dialogue is to resume on the morning of November 11. There have been no official reports of agreeing on ceasefire terms following the first day of talks.
Based on materials from: Marco Rubio briefing, Ukrinform.
