The United States opposes a narrative that could harm efforts to bring Russia and Ukraine to the negotiating table, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, Reuters reported.
The call was made before a meeting of G7 foreign ministers in La Malbaie, Quebec, which will be held from March 12 to 14.
Trump has caused division in the West by bringing the United States closer to Moscow while increasing criticism of Kiev.
According to four diplomats from G7 countries, Canada, which holds the rotating presidency of the organization, initially wanted the seven countries to agree on a comprehensive statement covering diverse topics, from the war in Ukraine to the Middle East and China. A second statement was supposed to address G7 efforts against Russia’s so-called shadow fleet. But reaching agreement on a comprehensive communique has proven very difficult this time. According to two diplomats, the United States has asked to remove references to sanctions and Russia’s war in Ukraine, while adopting a tougher tone toward China.
Rubio told reporters in Saudi Arabia that Washington could not sign anything that would hinder efforts to bring Russia and Ukraine to the negotiating table. “We feel that sometimes the antagonistic language makes it difficult to bring the parties to the table, especially since we are the only ones who seem to be in a position to have these conversations right now,” Rubio said. He said he was "confident" that they would ultimately arrive at a document that was meaningful and unifying without "undermining our ability to bring both sides to the table."
Three diplomats said the United States also opposed a separate statement on Russia's shadow fleet. Diplomats warned that talks were still underway to find a compromise.
Regarding the talks on Ukraine today in Saudi Arabia between US and Ukrainian delegations, Rubio said he was optimistic, DPA reported.
He added that the decisive factor would be to see to what extent the Ukrainians were willing to “do hard things”, just as the Russians would have to do to end the war.
Rubio also hinted that Ukraine could once again count on American aid if the talks today go well. "The Ukrainians are already receiving intelligence for defense purposes," he said.
Rubio did not rule out an informal meeting with Ukrainian President Zelensky, who has also been in Saudi Arabia since yesterday.
"The only solution to this war is diplomacy and bringing them together at the table, wherever possible," Rubio said. "I think the French and the British have been very supportive on this path over the last week and have been very helpful, so we hope we will have a good meeting," the Secretary of State added, referring to today's talks in Jeddah.
Rubio said, quoted by Ukrainska Pravda, which refers to The New York Times, that the American side will not provide military assistance to Russia, speaking about the situation with the suspension of arms supplies to Ukraine, FOCUS writes.
"The Russians cannot conquer all of Ukraine and it is clear that it will be very difficult for Ukraine to force the Russians to return to where they were in 2014, in any reasonable period of time", the Secretary of State believes.
He added that in future negotiations with Moscow it is necessary to determine what Russia is willing to concede, since "we do not know how far they are actually".
Speaking about the suspension of military aid to Ukraine, Rubio indicated that this issue will be discussed with Ukraine and the US position on it may change if they believe that Kiev is serious about peace negotiations. He stressed that the US will not provide support to Russia in any way.
"I can assure you: we will not provide military assistance to the Russians“, Rubio stated categorically.
According to media reports, Ukraine will offer the US a plan for a temporary ceasefire in the air and at sea, as well as strikes on energy and civilian infrastructure facilities.
Rubio said he sees prospects in Ukraine's proposal for a partial ceasefire, the BBC reported, quoted by FOCUS.
"I'm not saying that this is enough, but this is the concession that needs to be made to end the conflict“, Rubio commented on Monday.
The BBC recalls that Russia had previously rejected the idea of a temporary ceasefire, arguing that this was an attempt to buy time and prevent the military collapse of Ukraine.
"I'm not putting any conditions on what they should or shouldn't do. We want to hear what they're willing to do and compare it to what the Russians want, and then see how different we are," the secretary of state noted.