Rubio says he does not know if a negotiated peace in Ukraine is achievable

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Saturday 31 October that he did not know whether a negotiated end to the war between Russia and Ukraine could be reached.

“I don’t know if negotiated peace is achievable in Ukraine, that’s what we’re trying to find out,” Rubio told reporters at a press conference closing the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, the Kyiv Independent reported.

“I don’t think anyone here is claiming that we’re on the verge of a negotiated settlement,” he said. “We’re going to continue to try and see if we can reach an agreement, but I’m not here to tell you we are on the verge of one.”

Rubio was also asked about the decision to invite Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to the meeting. European ministers declined to pose with Lavrov for the traditional family photo on 30 October, according to media reports. Rubio said all parties needed to be in the room. “How can you have a negotiated settlement between Russia and Ukraine if you don’t have the ability to talk to both Russia and Ukraine?” he said.

Ukraine is not a G20 member and was not invited to the Atlanta meeting.

A new round of trilateral talks between Ukraine, Russia and the United States in Abu Dhabi is expected in early November, though no date has been set, the Kyiv Independent reported. Disagreements over territory and security guarantees remain unresolved, according to the outlet.

Earlier: Lavrov says he had ‘not bad, though brief’ talks with Rubio at G20 but sees no ‘real progress’ in US-Russia ties.