Watch live as Volodymyr Zelensky holds a news conference on Wednesday (12 March) after US and Ukraine ceasefire talks in Saudi Arabia.
During positive talks in Saudi Arabia, officials from Washington and Kyiv yesterday agreed on proposals for the ceasefire alongside a restoration of USmilitary aid and intelligence sharing to Ukraine.
Moscow will not comment on the proposals until it has spoken with the US, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. But Russian sources have told Reuters that Putin is unlikely to agree to a ceasefire in its current form – and that Moscow’s concerns must first be addressed.
Speaking to reporters in Ireland, Mr Rubio said Washington would contact Moscow “directly” about the agreement today.
“We’re going to say that Ukraine is prepared to stop all battlefield activity, and begin the immediate process in negotiating our enduring end of the war,” he said.
Mr Rubio also said building “deterrence” against Russia was a crucial element of peace in Ukraine. “There’s no way to have a enduring peace without the deterrence piece being a part of that,” he said.
