1 week ago
15
You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load.
Whether the Kremlin is serious about peace talks to end the Ukraine war will become clear soon, the secretary of state said.
Michael Crowley traveled to Brussels on Secretary of State Rubio’s plane and covered his meetings at NATO headquarters.
April 4, 2025, 12:26 p.m. ET
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday that Russia is running out of time to convince the Trump administration that it is serious about striking a peace deal with Ukraine and not just playing for time.
Speaking in Brussels after a two-day gathering of NATO ministers, Mr. Rubio said that the United States was losing patience with “talks about talks” and hinted that Russia was in danger of facing more American sanctions.
“We will know soon enough, in a matter of weeks, not months, whether Russia is serious about peace or not,” he told reporters. Members of Congress, he added, are already crafting new sanctions measures that administration officials are “not going to be able to stop” without signs of progress.
President Trump has vowed to end the war in Ukraine and is mediating talks between Moscow and Kyiv. Many observers had assumed that Russia would embrace such a deal and Ukraine would resist it, given that Russia occupies about one-fifth of its neighbor and has suffered staggering casualties.
But Mr. Rubio’s remarks were the latest sign that the Trump administration is coming around to a view long held by the Biden administration, and by Mr. Rubio himself when he was a Florida senator: that President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia does not bargain in good faith.
Many analysts say the Russian leader is stalling for time to press his military and political advantage.
