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President Donald Trump denied either the Russian or Ukrainian governments were “playing” him as he continues to push for an end to the three-year-old war that was launched with an unprovoked Russian invasion in 2022.
Speaking in the Oval Office Friday following a swearing-in ceremony for Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services administrator Mehmet Oz, Trump said the ongoing talks were “coming to a head” and warned that the U.S. would walk away from the peace efforts if a resolution is not reached soon.
“Now, if for some reason, one of the two parties makes it very difficult, we’re just going to say you’re foolish. You are fools, you horrible people,” Trump said. “And we’re going to just take a pass. But hopefully, we won’t have to do that.”
The president’s remarks came just hours after Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters in Paris that Washington may “move on” from efforts to broker an end to the war if the talks don’t bear fruit soon.
“We are now reaching a point where we need to decide whether this is even possible or not, Because if it’s not, then I think we’re just going to move on. It’s not our war. We have other priorities to focus on,” Rubio said, who was in Paris for talks with Ukrainian, British and European officials.
He also appeared to soften his tone towards the American allies who’ve been more supportive of Kyiv than the Trump administration has been, telling reporters that the U.K., France and Germany “can help us move the ball on this.”
President Donald Trump said the talks between Russia and Ukraine were ‘coming to a head’ (AP)
“There’s no one saying this can be done in 12 hours,” Rubio said. “But we want to see how far apart it is. We need to figure out here, now, within a matter of days, whether this is doable in the short term, because if it’s not, then I think we’re just going to move on.”
The parties are scheduled to meet again next week in London, and Rubio said those talks will be determinative as to whether the Trump administration remains involved.
According to the State Department, the U.S. top diplomat had previously told NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte would “step back from efforts to broker peace” if “a clear path to peace does not emerge soon” during a phone call earlier in the week.
Asked about Rubio’s comments, Trump told reporters: “Marco is right” but did not say the U.S. would walk away from the table.
I don’t want to say that,” Trump said. “But we want to see it end.”