Rubio concerned about risk of escalation after Ukrainian attack on St. Petersburg

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed concern about "risk of escalation" of the war between Russia and Ukraine, in particular because of the increased ability of the Ukrainian armed forces to strike deep into Russian territory, reported Agence France-Presse.

Rubio said this during a hearing in the House of Representatives yesterday - the day Ukrainian drones struck military and energy facilities in St. Petersburg - just hours before the start of the annual international economic forum in Russia's second largest city.

"What has changed in recent months is that Ukraine has become increasingly effective at striking long-range targets deep into Russian territory," the US Secretary of State told the Foreign Affairs Committee of the lower house of Congress. "I think this is one of the things that reminds us why it is important to try to end this war if we can, because the risk of escalation is real, more real than it was two years ago", he added.

Rubio expressed the readiness of the United States "to play every possible role in this context to restore peace". "At this stage, neither side, especially Russia, is willing to make the necessary concessions to restore peace", he reported at the same time.

This is the first reaction from the United States after the exchange of blows between Russia and Ukraine in recent days, AFP notes. Rubio was heard for hours in Congress yesterday and today, but the topic of this war was largely ignored at the expense of the conflict in the Middle East.