Rubio denied Zelenskyy's claim that Washington asked Ukraine to cede territory to Russia

(Patria) - U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday rejected Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's claims that the Donald Trump administration is demanding Kyiv cede Donbas to Russia in order to receive U.S. security guarantees in any ceasefire plan, AP reported.

Speaking to reporters after a Group of Seven meeting in France, Rubio disputed Zelenskyy's recent comments and said the United States had not made such a provision in its negotiations with Ukraine.

"That's a lie," Rubio said. "And I saw him say it. And it's sad that he would say that because he knows it's not true and that he wasn't told that."

In an interview published this week, Zelenskyy told Reuters that the United States is making its offer of security guarantees for Ukraine conditional on ceding the Donbas region, an industrial center coveted by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Russian forces occupy most of the region but have not captured a part that is among the most heavily fortified sections of the front line.

Zelenskyy said that, given the United States is focused on the war against Iran, President Donald Trump is seeking to end the conflict in Ukraine.
"The Americans are ready to finalize these guarantees at a high level when Ukraine is ready to withdraw from Donbas," Zelenskyy told Reuters.

Rubio denied Zelenskyy's claims and said the United States had only gone through Russia's demands. He said security guarantees could only come after the fighting ends and that the United States will continue to advocate for a peace agreement.

"We told the Ukrainian side what the Russians are insisting on," Rubio said.
"We are not advocating for that. We explained it to them. It's their choice. It's not up to us to act on their behalf. We never told them they have to take it or leave it. The role we played is to try to understand what both sides want and see if we can bridge the middle."

The Ukrainian president's office declined to comment on this disagreement to AP.
Putin wants Kyiv to cede control of the entire Donbas region, which, analysts say, would give Moscow a permanent launchpad from which to threaten other parts of Ukraine.

Rubio noted that U.S. talks with Ukrainians were held last week in Florida, but no other meetings are scheduled for now. He also said that, although no U.S. weapons intended for Ukraine have been diverted from sales to the Middle East, that could happen if deemed necessary.

"If we need something for America, and it's American, we will keep it for America first," Rubio said. "But so far that hasn't happened."

AP reported that U.S. Patriot air defense missiles were moved from Europe toward the Middle East as Washington redirects resources to the war against Iran. Zelenskyy warned that Kyiv will "definitely" face a shortage of Patriot systems due to the war against Iran.