Washington, 17 February 2025 (dpa/MIA) - US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says both Ukraine and Europe should be involved in negotiations to end the war with Russia, after fears the US and Russia would engage in bilateral peace talks.

"If it's real negotiations - and we're not there yet - but if that were to happen, Ukraine will have to be involved, because they're the one that were invaded," Rubio told US broadcaster CBS.

"And the Europeans will have to be involved because they have sanctions on Putin and Russia as well and they've contributed to this effort," Rubio said, cautioning that "we're just not there yet."

The US Secretary of State is currently in Jerusalem, where he held a press conference with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. From there, Rubio is travelling on to Saudi Arabia to meet with Russian representatives together with US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz.

Rubio did not say in the interview who will be part of the Russian delegation and when exactly the meeting will take place.

Neither representatives of Ukraine nor the Europeans will be at the table during the talks in Saudi Arabia. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had previously said on US television that he would not accept any peace solution in which Ukraine had not participated.

He also demanded security guarantees from the US. Without these, the chances of an economic pact with the US - which includes access to rare earths stored in Ukraine - would also shrink.

Rubio emphasized that the preliminary talks must now be followed by action. "The next few weeks and days will determine whether it's serious or not." A single phone call and even a single meeting will not be able to resolve the conflict.

Photo: EPA