Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasized Sunday that any peace deal to end the war in Ukraine must ensure that they never will “never have another war again” — as top negotiators from Washington and Kyiv met in Miami.
The meeting came before President Trump’s top envoys jet over to Moscow to try to sell the latest deal to Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin.
Their goal is to close the gap on what territory Ukraine could give up and what security guarantees Kyiv will receive in exchange — two critical issues that were left unresolved during talks in Geneva one week earlier.
“This is not just about ending a war this is about ending a war in a way that creates a mechanism and a way forward that will allow them to be independent and sovereign and never have another war again,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said at the start of the meeting.
His declaration came following criticism that a 28-point US-backed peace plan heavily favored Moscow and would have left Ukraine vulnerable to future Russian attacks.
A subsequent 19-point proposal that Ukraine agreed to appeared likely to be rejected by the Kremlin.
The meeting comes days after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff and top negotiator, Andriy Yermak, resigned following a raid on his home by anti-corruption forces in Ukraine.
Yermak, who was expected to lead the negotiations, is in the crosshairs of an investigation into a scheme in which contractors of Ukraine’s largest electricity producer, Energoatom, were allegedly forced to make 10 to 15% kickbacks or get blacklisted.
Ukrainian national security adviser Rustem Umerov is now leading the peace talks in Miami for Ukraine.
“I remain in constant contact with the President of Ukraine. We have clear directives and priorities: safeguarding Ukrainian interests, ensuring substantive dialogue, and advancing on the basis of the progress achieved in Geneva,” Umerov posted on X after talks began Sunday.
“We are working to secure real peace for Ukraine and reliable, long-term security guarantees.”
Trump’s team included Rubio, special envoy Steve Witkoff and the president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.
The talks took place at billionaire Witkoff’s Shell Bay golf club.
Both the US and Ukrainian negotiators have been revamping the initial 28-point plan that Trump’s team rolled out earlier this month to end the bloody war in Ukraine after conferring with Russia.
“The American side is demonstrating a constructive approach, and in the coming days it is feasible to flesh out the steps to determine how to bring the war to a dignified end,” Zelensky said Saturday before the talks began.
“The Ukrainian delegation has the necessary directives, and I expect the guys to work in accordance with clear Ukrainian priorities.”
On Tuesday, Witkoff and Kushner are set to unveil their updated peace plan to Putin, who just last week declared that Russia will either acquire the land it has sought peacefully or via force.
“I look forward to hopefully meeting with President Zelenskyy and President Putin soon, but ONLY when the deal to end this War is FINAL or, in its final stages,” Trump wrote on Truth Social last week.
