Rubio hails Abu Dhabi trilateral talks as 'very productive'

Abu Dhabi trilateral talks

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday characterized trilateral negotiations between Washington, Moscow, and Kyiv in Abu Dhabi as "very productive," saying diplomatic efforts are aimed at constructing durable security arrangements to end the war in Ukraine. "There's a lot of work behind in that regard. It's not like something that's on the verge of being solved in the next 24 hours or anything like that," Rubio told reporters at a G7 ministerial meeting in France.

Rubio noted that Russian representatives agreeing to the trilateral format and showing up is "good," adding that European Union nations are present in Abu Dhabi alongside US negotiators Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff. Washington seeks to eventually expand the trilateral format to directly include European allies at the negotiating table "because they are part of solving this problem for the long term," he said. "We want the war to end, and we want there never to be a war again. So that requires not just ending the war, but also ensuring that Ukraine never again feels threatened for its security," Rubio added.

Delegations and continuation

Day one of the latest trilateral Russia-Ukraine peace talks in the Emirati capital ended after four and a half hours of negotiations, according to Russian media outlets. Ukrainian state news agency Ukrinform, citing the press service of Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service, reported that the talks will resume on Wednesday morning, with Russian presidential envoy Vladimir Medinsky and Rustem Umerov, head of Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service, leading their respective delegations.

Economic pressure on Iran

Addressing the Iran war, Rubio said the administration's economic campaign is inflicting such devastation that President Donald Trump has "no need to conduct major combat operations" at this time, though the US military remains ready if Tehran breaches unspecified "red lines." He described Iranian demands, including reparations, as "unrealistic" preconditions, emphasizing that the US remains open to diplomacy once economic realities compel Tehran to change its conditions.

Maritime security and regional defense

Rubio criticized the reluctance of international partners to contribute military assets to protect commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, noting that maritime transit has reached 80% to 85% of pre-conflict levels with Iranian vessels being the only tankers consistently halted. He said he raised the issue of global partners taking part to safeguard the commercial corridor in a G7 meeting but "didn't get a response."

The secretary of state voiced concern and said Washington is "troubled by" Houthi strikes targeting Saudi Arabia, confirming that the US maintains binding defense agreements with Riyadh and will continue living up to those commitments. On a possible meeting between the US, Russia, and China, Rubio confirmed the parties are actively working to organize discussions on denuclearization, though he did not specify whether other parties are open to the agenda.