US will 'move on' from Ukraine peace talks if no progress soon.
The US will abandon trying to broker a Russia-Ukraine peace deal within days unless there are clear signs a truce can be reached, the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has warned.
Rubio said the US wanted to help end the war but was willing to move on if there were no immediate signs of progress.
"We're not going to continue with this endeavour for weeks and months on end," Rubio said, adding that the US had "other priorities to focus on".
The comments come just hours after Ukraine took the first step towards signing a minerals deal with Washington that intends to set up an investment fund for Ukraine's reconstruction.
Following a meeting with European leaders in Paris on Thursday, Rubio told reporters on Friday: "We need to determine very quickly now - and I'm talking about a matter of days - whether or not this is doable" in the short-term.
"If it's not going to happen, then we're just going to move on," he said.
He said it was clear that a peace deal would be difficult to strike but there needed to be signs it could be done soon.
The comments follow Ukraine and the US signing a memorandum of intent on Thursday, published by the Ukrainian government, which states that the countries intend to establish an investment fund for the reconstruction of Ukraine as part of an economic partnership agreement.
The aim is to finalise the deal by 26 April, the memo says.
The document provides no details on natural resources, but previous leaks have suggested the deal has been extended beyond minerals to control of Ukraine's energy infrastructure, as well as its oil and gas.
The US has so far resisted providing Kyiv with security guarantees to support any future ceasefire.
The memo said the "American people desire to invest alongside the Ukrainian people in a free, sovereign and secure Ukraine" and the US and Ukraine "desire a lasting peace in Ukraine and a durable partnership between their two peoples and governments".
Donald Trump's public shouting match with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House in February had temporarily blown negotiations on a deal off course.
Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko announced the signing of the memorandum on X. Her post included photos of Svyrydenko and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent signing separately.
"We are happy to announce the signing, with our American partners, of a Memorandum of Intent, which paves the way for an Economic Partnership Agreement and the establishment of the Investment Fund for the Reconstruction of Ukraine," Svyrydenko wrote.
The signing was conducted over an online call with Bessent, who said the details of the deal were still being worked out.
"It's substantially what we'd agreed on previously. When the president [Zelensky] was here, we had a memorandum of understanding. We went straight to the big deal, and I think it's an 80-page agreement and that's what we'll be signing," he said.
The memo said technical discussions were held in Washington DC as recently as 11 and 12 April.
Trump also hinted at the deal during a press conference with Italian leader Giorgia Meloni.
"We have a minerals deal which I guess is going to be signed on Thursday... next Thursday. Soon. And I assume they're going to live up to the deal. So we'll see. But we have a deal on that," he said.
The White House did not respond to a request for further details on contents of the agreement, Reuters news agency reports.
Newsline #news #politics
The US will abandon trying to broker a Russia-Ukraine peace deal within days unless there are clear signs a truce can be reached, the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has warned.
Rubio said the US wanted to help end the war but was willing to move on if there were no immediate signs of progress.
"We're not going to continue with this endeavour for weeks and months on end," Rubio said, adding that the US had "other priorities to focus on".
The comments come just hours after Ukraine took the first step towards signing a minerals deal with Washington that intends to set up an investment fund for Ukraine's reconstruction.
Following a meeting with European leaders in Paris on Thursday, Rubio told reporters on Friday: "We need to determine very quickly now - and I'm talking about a matter of days - whether or not this is doable" in the short-term.
"If it's not going to happen, then we're just going to move on," he said.
He said it was clear that a peace deal would be difficult to strike but there needed to be signs it could be done soon.
The comments follow Ukraine and the US signing a memorandum of intent on Thursday, published by the Ukrainian government, which states that the countries intend to establish an investment fund for the reconstruction of Ukraine as part of an economic partnership agreement.
The aim is to finalise the deal by 26 April, the memo says.
The document provides no details on natural resources, but previous leaks have suggested the deal has been extended beyond minerals to control of Ukraine's energy infrastructure, as well as its oil and gas.
The US has so far resisted providing Kyiv with security guarantees to support any future ceasefire.
The memo said the "American people desire to invest alongside the Ukrainian people in a free, sovereign and secure Ukraine" and the US and Ukraine "desire a lasting peace in Ukraine and a durable partnership between their two peoples and governments".
Donald Trump's public shouting match with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House in February had temporarily blown negotiations on a deal off course.
Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko announced the signing of the memorandum on X. Her post included photos of Svyrydenko and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent signing separately.
"We are happy to announce the signing, with our American partners, of a Memorandum of Intent, which paves the way for an Economic Partnership Agreement and the establishment of the Investment Fund for the Reconstruction of Ukraine," Svyrydenko wrote.
The signing was conducted over an online call with Bessent, who said the details of the deal were still being worked out.
"It's substantially what we'd agreed on previously. When the president [Zelensky] was here, we had a memorandum of understanding. We went straight to the big deal, and I think it's an 80-page agreement and that's what we'll be signing," he said.
The memo said technical discussions were held in Washington DC as recently as 11 and 12 April.
Trump also hinted at the deal during a press conference with Italian leader Giorgia Meloni.
"We have a minerals deal which I guess is going to be signed on Thursday... next Thursday. Soon. And I assume they're going to live up to the deal. So we'll see. But we have a deal on that," he said.
The White House did not respond to a request for further details on contents of the agreement, Reuters news agency reports.
Newsline #news #politics
US will 'move on' from Ukraine peace talks if no progress soon.
The US will abandon trying to broker a Russia-Ukraine peace deal within days unless there are clear signs a truce can be reached, the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has warned.
Rubio said the US wanted to help end the war but was willing to move on if there were no immediate signs of progress.
"We're not going to continue with this endeavour for weeks and months on end," Rubio said, adding that the US had "other priorities to focus on".
The comments come just hours after Ukraine took the first step towards signing a minerals deal with Washington that intends to set up an investment fund for Ukraine's reconstruction.
Following a meeting with European leaders in Paris on Thursday, Rubio told reporters on Friday: "We need to determine very quickly now - and I'm talking about a matter of days - whether or not this is doable" in the short-term.
"If it's not going to happen, then we're just going to move on," he said.
He said it was clear that a peace deal would be difficult to strike but there needed to be signs it could be done soon.
The comments follow Ukraine and the US signing a memorandum of intent on Thursday, published by the Ukrainian government, which states that the countries intend to establish an investment fund for the reconstruction of Ukraine as part of an economic partnership agreement.
The aim is to finalise the deal by 26 April, the memo says.
The document provides no details on natural resources, but previous leaks have suggested the deal has been extended beyond minerals to control of Ukraine's energy infrastructure, as well as its oil and gas.
The US has so far resisted providing Kyiv with security guarantees to support any future ceasefire.
The memo said the "American people desire to invest alongside the Ukrainian people in a free, sovereign and secure Ukraine" and the US and Ukraine "desire a lasting peace in Ukraine and a durable partnership between their two peoples and governments".
Donald Trump's public shouting match with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House in February had temporarily blown negotiations on a deal off course.
Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko announced the signing of the memorandum on X. Her post included photos of Svyrydenko and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent signing separately.
"We are happy to announce the signing, with our American partners, of a Memorandum of Intent, which paves the way for an Economic Partnership Agreement and the establishment of the Investment Fund for the Reconstruction of Ukraine," Svyrydenko wrote.
The signing was conducted over an online call with Bessent, who said the details of the deal were still being worked out.
"It's substantially what we'd agreed on previously. When the president [Zelensky] was here, we had a memorandum of understanding. We went straight to the big deal, and I think it's an 80-page agreement and that's what we'll be signing," he said.
The memo said technical discussions were held in Washington DC as recently as 11 and 12 April.
Trump also hinted at the deal during a press conference with Italian leader Giorgia Meloni.
"We have a minerals deal which I guess is going to be signed on Thursday... next Thursday. Soon. And I assume they're going to live up to the deal. So we'll see. But we have a deal on that," he said.
The White House did not respond to a request for further details on contents of the agreement, Reuters news agency reports.
Newsline #news #politics
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