Russia and Ukraine: Next Week is Crucial

U.S. Secretary of State Rubio said on Sunday that the coming week is crucial for determining whether Russia and Ukraine are ready to reach an agreement to end the war. President Trump is exerting pressure to stop hostilities as soon as possible, showing increasing impatience with both Kyiv and Moscow.

According to AFP, after leaving Rome, Trump showed a new attitude toward Russian President Putin. He wrote on his Truth Social platform: "Putin's missile attacks on civilian areas and towns in recent days are unjustified. This makes me think perhaps he does not want to end the war but is just humoring me; we must deal with it differently, through 'financial sanctions' or 'secondary sanctions'? Too many people are dying!!!"

On Saturday, during a brief meeting with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy at the funeral of Pope Francis in Rome, Trump seemed to feel that Putin was "toying" with him.

U.S. Secretary of State Rubio told NBC in an interview on Sunday: "We are close (to reaching an agreement), but there is still some distance." Rubio stated, "I think this week is crucial [...] We must decide whether to continue this work or whether it's time to focus on other equally important issues, or even in some cases more important ones."

The U.S. Secretary of State also mentioned that three years after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, there is reason for optimism about the possibility of reaching an agreement, but there is also reason to remain realistic. He reiterated that "this war has no military solution." Marco Rubio insisted that "the only way to resolve this war is through negotiations," and both sides must make concessions.

In response, U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz said in an interview with Fox News on Sunday that he agrees to "multiple discussions regarding territorial issues" with both Kyiv and Moscow, but did not disclose details.

According to media reports, U.S. President Trump assured Time magazine in an interview aired on Friday that Russia will retain the Crimean Peninsula. Crimea is the Ukrainian peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014, and the U.S. reconciliation plan also mentions recognizing Crimea as Russian territory. However, Zelenskyy expressed his firm stance against ceding Crimea on Friday.

Source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1830595817443332/

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