Rubio to meet Lavrov at UN as Trump shifts stance on Ukraine
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Wednesday at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
The meeting comes after President Donald Trump shifted his stance on Ukraine not being able to win back its territory from Russia's invasion, News.Az reports citing foreign media.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump explained he now believes Ukraine can win back territory it lost to Russia in the war with the help of NATO.
"After getting to know and fully understand the Ukraine/Russia Military and Economic situation and, after seeing the Economic trouble it is causing Russia, I think Ukraine, with the support of the European Union, is in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form," the president wrote. "With time, patience, and the financial support of Europe and, in particular, NATO, the original Borders from where this War started, is very much an option. Why not?"
The topics to be discussed in the meeting are still unclear.
Rubio and Lavrov last met in July on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meeting in Malaysia.
He said talks with Lavrov were productive, highlighting that they exchanged "new" and "different" approaches to ending the war in Ukraine.
On Tuesday at the UN Security Council, Rubio said he made it clear that the "war needs to end. If it does not, the President will take the steps necessary to impose costs for continued aggression."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the meeting with Trump productive and thanked Trump for the opportunity to speak.
"I am grateful to President Trump for strong cooperation with the United States. Mr President clearly understands the situation and is well-informed about all aspects of this war," Zelenskyy wrote on X. "We highly value his resolve to help end this war."
He also defended Trump's speech, in which he delivered a scathing critique of the United Nations and said they are not solving problems but creating new problems for the U.S. to solve.
"It's too bad that I had to do these things instead of the United Nations doing them," Trump said, referencing ending wars. "That being the case, what is the purpose of the United Nations?"
Rubio wrote on X that the president is setting the model for the free world.
"Strong borders and energy dominance are what make America great. Every nation must stand against unmitigated immigration disasters and fake energy catastrophes."
Trump warned that countries are "going to hell" over what he called "the crisis of uncontrolled immigration."
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