The United States sees its role as helping to bring an end to the war in Ukraine, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said during a joint press conference with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico.
Rubio described the conflict as “very deadly, very bloody, and very costly,” stressing the humanitarian toll on both sides.
“We view the United States’ role as one to try to facilitate the end to a very deadly, very bloody, and very costly war,” Rubio said. “There is horrible suffering… The deaths, regardless of what the numbers are on both sides, weigh too high.”
He pointed to ongoing hardships in Kyiv, including electricity shortages and limited heating during winter, as further evidence of the urgent need for a resolution.
Rubio added that President Donald Trump has spent the past year assessing whether Washington could act as a mediator in negotiations aimed at ending the conflict.
“The president has spent a year at the highest levels of our government trying to define whether we can be facilitators of a negotiated end to this terrible conflict,” Rubio said.
Under the current US administration, efforts to advance a negotiated settlement have been ongoing for more than a year. Formal progress on draft peace documents began in November 2025, according to officials familiar with the discussions.
An initial 28-point proposal was later streamlined into a 20-point framework. The plan reportedly includes security guarantees for Ukraine and measures to support its economic recovery. However, key issues — including the status of Donbas and the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant — remain unresolved.
Recent reports in the Financial Times suggested that Ukraine could hold presidential elections and a referendum on a potential peace agreement by mid-May. The report said US officials viewed those steps as important to securing long-term security guarantees.
Ukrainian officials have disputed aspects of that reporting. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has confirmed that Washington is seeking to end the war by June, while indicating that elections could only be held if a temporary ceasefire is achieved.
According to Reuters, discussions between US and Ukrainian officials have included the possibility of signing a peace agreement as early as March.
Three rounds of trilateral talks between Ukraine, the United States and Russia have taken place this year. The first two were held in Abu Dhabi in January and February, with a third round scheduled for February 17–18 in Geneva.
While negotiations appear to be advancing, significant political and territorial questions remain, and no formal agreement has yet been reached.
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