Washington urges Russia to end hostilities, embrace dialogue
Marco Rubio told reporters at Shannon Airport in Ireland that Washington is firmly calling on Russia to "end all hostilities." The US Secretary of State said he hopes for a positive response from Russia and emphasized that "there is no military solution to this conflict."
- There is no military solution to this conflict. The only way to achieve peace is through negotiations - said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday, referring to Russia's response to the ongoing ceasefire negotiations in Ukraine.
Rubio on contacts with Russia
Rubio added that on Wednesday the US will contact Russia directly. - It'll be delivered to them directly through multiple channels - he said and added that "the ball is now in Russia's court."
The US Secretary of State referred to the statement by Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, who said earlier that "Moscow is expecting to receive information from Washington" regarding the outcome of Tuesday's negotiations.
Speaking from Ireland, Rubio emphasized that the United States is pressing Russia to end all military actions, "so people will stop dying, so bullets will stop flying."
- If Russia says 'no', it will say a lot - he stated.
Rubio also expressed that he would not call the resource agreement between Ukraine and the US a security guarantee.
He opined that European sanctions against Russia will be considered in any ceasefire agreement.
Ukraine ready for a ceasefire
In nearly nine hours of talks on Tuesday in Saudi Arabia, Ukraine agreed to the American proposal for an immediate 30-day ceasefire, while the US announced the resumption of halted military aid to the country.
The proposed ceasefire - as noted later by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky - concerns actions in the air, at sea, and along the entire front line. Russia announced that it would make its own decisions regarding the conflict in Ukraine.
