Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that he hopes that a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine will take place on “day” if Russian leaders agree, and plans to acquire diplomats from groups of seven Allies to end the war at this week's meeting in Canada.
“I want the world to look like a few days here. Neither side is firing at each other. It's not missiles, bullets, artillery, not artillery,” he told reporters during a refueling halt in Ireland, which flew from Saudi Arabia to Canada. “The gunfire stops, the battle stops, and the story begins.”
Rubio also downplayed the notion that he encountered hostility from American allies due to President Trump's recent tariffs. And he said he expected to have a sincere discussion with Canadian officials despite Trump's threat to Canada. The president is also imposing mandatory tariffs on Canada.
“That's not something to discuss in the G7, not on a trip here,” he said. “They are host countries, so there are a lot of other things we're working on together.”
“It's not a meeting on how to take over Canada,” he added.
White House national security advisers Rubio and Michael Waltz met for hours with Ukrainian officials in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, explaining how to begin the negotiation process with Russia to end the war. Hostilities began in 2014 when Russia invaded and annexed Crimea, and in 2022 a full-scale invasion began.
After Tuesday's meeting, Ukrainian officials said they agreed to the US proposal for a 30-day interim ceasefire. After denounced Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House, Trump withheld Ukrainians US weapons and intelligence news aid to try to force them to negotiate. US officials said aid has resumed after the Jeddah meeting.
Rubio said US officials plan to “in touch” with Russian officials on Wednesday to discuss the proposed ceasefire.
“If their response is no, it would be very unfortunate and would make their intentions clear,” he added.
Rubio said when he met with Russian officials in Saudi Arabia last month by Waltz and Trump's envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkov, last month, the Russians seemed open to the idea of ​​reconciliation in the war. “They expressed their willingness to end this conflict under appropriate circumstances that they had not defined,” he said.
Rubio said one of his main goals at the seven conferences is to have a united front to encourage peace negotiations, other countries that are all supporters of the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Ukraine. The meeting begins with a reception in Quebec on Wednesday night.
He urges that the “full statement” issued by the conference “is that the United States has done good things to the world to advance this process, and now we are eagerly waiting for a response from Russia, and to end all hostilities.
Ukrainian officials said they would like to ensure that several issues, including the exchange of prisoners, the release of Ukrainian children who have been accused of Russia, and humanitarian assistance, are addressed in all consultations.
When asked what America's position on Ukraine's security guarantees that would help stop Ukraine's future Russian attacks, Rubio simply stated that deterrence was part of peace negotiations.
“There is no way to have lasting peace without deterrence being part of it,” he said, adding that the commercial mineral agreement between the US and Ukraine would help enrich Ukraine, but it was not a deterrent against Russian attacks.
Trump claims that the US and Ukraine will sign such an agreement, suggesting that investment by Ukrainian American companies will help stem hostile Russia.
Rubio said Europe's commitment to providing security to Ukraine is also part of the peace negotiations. He said that although he claims that if European countries arise they will be central players in the settlement, it is unclear whether those countries will become more involved in negotiations.
“In any negotiation, you imagine that if we get there with the Russians, they'll raise the European sanctions imposed on them,” Rubio said. “So, it goes without saying that the issue of sanctions in Europe is what happens with frozen assets and more.”
While the foreign ministers gathered in Quebec hope to discuss the war, Trump's hostility towards the US alliance, his cooperation with Russia, and his unpredictable tariff actions have created many issues diplomats are trying to raise.
Rubio said Trump is imposing tariffs to “develop domestic capabilities” for manufacturing, not just in the defense industry.
Canadian officials, including the next prime minister, Mark Carney, have been taking mutual action on tariffs and tackling other threats to Trump. Rubio said Trump's statement on the annexation was based on both economic and security concerns.
“What he said is that they should be the 51st state from an economic standpoint,” Rubio said. “He says there's no need to worry about fentanyl meeting if they become the 51st state. He insisted that it was their interest to do so. Clearly, Canadians disagree.”
