US Secretary of State: Ukraine must cede territory for peace to end war with Russia

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has emphasised that Ukraine must make territorial concessions to Russia as part of any peace agreement to end the ongoing war.

Rubio, who was traveling to Saudi Arabia for peace talks, argued that such concessions were "the only way" to bring an end to the full-scale invasion that Russia launched in February 2022, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media. 

The war has resulted in nearly a million casualties on both sides, marking Europe’s largest conflict since World War II. 

“They’ve [Ukrainians] suffered greatly and their people have suffered greatly, and it’s hard in the aftermath of something like that to even talk about concessions,” Rubio told reporters. “But that’s the only way this is going to end to prevent more suffering.” 

The Saudi Arabia talks will be the first high-level engagement between US officials and Ukraine’s leadership since a public clash between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and President Donald Trump. Rubio, while cautious not to “pre-negotiate,” said the US delegation aims to understand what Ukraine is “willing to do in order to achieve peace.” Rubio acknowledged that Ukraine’s willingness to make such concessions may not align with Russia's demands. "It may be incompatible with what the Russians are willing to do," he said. Ukraine has consistently rejected any ceasefire agreement that would involve ceding territory seized by Russia, including Crimea. 

The Ukrainian government has instead called for a “just peace” that includes Russian reparations for the war. Zelenskyy is in Saudi Arabia to meet Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman but will not join the peace talks. Ukraine’s top officials, including Andriy Yermak, Andrii Sybiha, and Rustem Umerov, will represent the country in the discussions. Rubio also hinted that US military aid to Ukraine might resume depending on the outcome of the talks.

By Naila Huseynova