Rubio Says Trump Advances Russia-Ukraine Peace Talks After Zelenskyy Meeting

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said progress toward ending the war in Ukraine is advancing after President Donald Trump hosted day-long talks in Washington on Aug. 18 with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European officials. Rubio told Fox News that Trump is "the only leader in the world" able to convene both Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin and that Moscow has agreed in principle to a future face-to-face meeting between the two wartime leaders, to be followed by trilateral discussions involving the United States. Rubio framed the developments as the first substantive movement in more than three years of fighting, contrasting Trump’s approach with what he described as a stalemate under the prior Biden administration. He said the new administration has shifted from outright U.S. funding of Kyiv’s defense to a model in which weapons are sold to Ukraine and paid for by European nations through NATO, adding that the change has helped open diplomatic space for talks. While Rubio cautioned that a comprehensive settlement will require additional work, he argued that the willingness of both sides to explore a negotiated end to the conflict marks a significant departure from the previous deadlock. No timetable has been announced for the prospective Putin-Zelenskyy meeting.