Rubio Says Ukraine and Europe Will Be Included in Negotiations as Peace Talks Progress

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio mentioned that serious negotiations to end the conflict in Ukraine have not yet started. He stated that Ukraine and other European countries will be involved once talks progress.

On Feb. 16, the French government announced it will host a summit of European leaders on Feb. 17 to address the Russia–Ukraine war and European security. This comes after retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, excluded Europe from negotiations concerning Ukraine’s future following years of conflict with Russia.

Rubio reassured European leaders that they will be part of the actual negotiations to resolve Moscow’s war. He highlighted that President Trump and Vladimir Putin had discussed peace, stressing the need for actions to follow the words for substantial progress to occur.

The Kremlin emphasized that the recent phone call between Putin and Trump signified a shift towards discussing peace rather than war between Russia and the United States.

U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and national security adviser Mike Waltz were set to depart for Saudi Arabia to continue discussions. Rubio also mentioned his scheduled official travel to Saudi Arabia, and the Russian delegation was yet to be finalized.

French President Emmanuel Macron will host an emergency summit on the Ukraine war with European leaders on Monday. The summit will address the change in the U.S. approach to Ukraine and potential risks to European security.

Macron invited key European countries and the European Union leadership to discuss providing immediate assistance to Ukraine and ensuring security for Kyiv and Europe.

The Trump administration is urging NATO allies in Europe to take a leading role in providing security guarantees for the region as the U.S. focuses on border security and countering Chinese influence.

The Trump administration’s envoy for Ukraine stated that Europe would not be part of peace talks for Ukraine. However, Europe’s interests will still be considered in the process.

European leaders expressed concerns about potentially being excluded from negotiations and called for increased involvement in finding solutions.

The talks in Saudi Arabia aim to bring peace to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and involve discussions on territorial concessions and targeting Russia’s oil revenues.

U.S. and Russian officials are expected to meet in Saudi Arabia for further peace talks, with the goal of arranging a meeting between Trump, Putin, and Zelenskyy to bring an end to the conflict.

Reuters contributed to this report.