The United States is no longer providing weapons and funding directly to Ukraine, but is selling them, with payments being borne by European countries through NATO, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in an interview with Fox News after President Donald Trump's meeting with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky and a number of European leaders, News.bg reports.
„We are no longer providing weapons and money to Ukraine. Now we are selling them weapons, and European countries are paying through NATO. They are using NATO to buy weapons and transfer them to Ukraine,” Rubio said, calling it a key shift from the previous administration’s policy.
The White House meeting on Monday brought together Zelensky, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgi Meloni, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. Trump stressed that this was the first-ever White House forum with so many leaders at the same time.
During the meeting, the US president held a phone call with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. According to Trump, the two discussed the possibility of a meeting between Putin and Zelensky, which could be followed by trilateral talks with the participation of the United States. The Kremlin also confirmed its readiness to continue direct talks between Moscow and Kiev.
Rubio said that for the first time in three and a half years there were signs of “movement“ towards a possible settlement of the conflict. He stressed that a future peace agreement must include guarantees for the security of Ukraine, which Washington and its European partners are already working on.
According to him, any solution would require mutual concessions, including on the issue of territories controlled by Russia. “No side will get 100 percent of its demands. Every war ends with a compromise, except for unconditional surrender, and that will not happen here“, the Secretary of State said.
Rubio added that Trump is the only world leader capable of bringing Putin and Zelensky together at the same table. “The president hates war and has made peace his priority“, he concluded.