Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he discussed a new idea for a potential Ukraine ceasefire during a Thursday meeting with his counterpart, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Rubio, who also serves as President Trump’s national security adviser, confirmed that Lavrov presented new ideas about Ukraine peace negotiations during the 50-minute meeting.
“I think it’s a new and a different approach. Again, I wouldn’t characterize it as something that guarantees peace, but it’s a concept that we’ll — I’ll take back to the president today and — here as soon as I finish with you,” Rubio told reporters in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, after the huddle with the Russian diplomat.
“We shared some ideas and comments, which I’ll take back to Washington as early as this evening in terms of calls … and perhaps there’s something to build on there,” the secretary of State added.
Rubio said the administration will continue to engage with all parties and added that he relayed Trump’s frustrations with Russia over the “lack of progress in peace talks or in a path forward.”
“And look, the president’s been pretty clear. He’s disappointed and frustrated that there’s not been more flexibility on the Russian side to bring about an end to this conflict,” Rubio said after the huddle. “We hope that can change, and we’re going to continue to stay involved where we see opportunities to make a difference.”
Russia’s Foreign Ministry said Lavrov and Rubio had a “substantive and frank exchange” of views over the situation in Ukraine. They also touched on Iran, Syria and other “international issues.”
“They have reaffirmed mutual commitment to searching for peaceful solutions to conflict situations and resuming Russian-US economic and humanitarian cooperation and unhindered ties between their countries’ societies, which could be promoted by the resumption of direct flights,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement after the meeting, adding that Rubio and Lavrov “emphasized the importance of continued efforts to normalise the functioning of bilateral diplomatic missions.”
The two diplomats met while at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum. This was their second in-person meeting since Rubio became the U.S.’s top diplomat. The meeting took place as Trump has ramped up his criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin in recent days.
“That is a war that it should have never happened. A lot of people are dying and it should end. We get a lot of bulls— thrown at us by Putin, if you want to know the truth. He’s very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
Trump has pushed to end the three-year war in Eastern Europe but has had limited success so far, as Russia appears not to have budged on its demands.
Russia has continued its attacks on Ukraine, firing 728 drones, including more than 300 Shahed drones earlier this week, hitting the city of Lutsk, located in the northwest of the country, the hardest.
Putin talked with Trump on Thursday last week, saying hours later that he had made “no progress” in forging a potential ceasefire. The president also said that he was “disappointed” with the conversation and that he does not think Putin was “looking to stop, and that’s too bad.”
The huddle between Rubio and Lavrov came just days after the U.S. resumed sending some defensive weapons to Ukraine, reversing course days after the Defense Department paused deliveries of air defense missiles and munitions. The president said the continued delivery of some weapons was needed to ensure Ukraine can defend itself amid the attacks from Russia.
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