State Department: Russia and Ukraine Must Negotiate Directly

The U.S. government will no longer act as a mediator between Moscow and Kyiv; the two sides must now negotiate peace directly, said State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce, Orda.kz reports.

She clarified that the U.S. will continue efforts to achieve peace, but the outcome of the war will depend on specific proposals from Russia and Ukraine.

And the Secretary’s also made it very clear that while our style will change, the methodology of how we contribute to this will change in that we will not be the mediators. That is what I mentioned on Tuesday, and the nature of how this would change is we would not – we certainly are still committed to it and will help and do what we can. But we are not going to fly around the world at the drop of a hat to mediate meetings, that it is now between the two parties, and now – now is the time that they need to present and develop concrete ideas about how this conflict is going to end. It’s going to be up to them. Bruce stated. 

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Fox News that the positions of Russia and Ukraine remain far apart and that the U.S. is not giving up efforts to achieve a peaceful resolution.

He emphasized that President Donald Trump will ultimately decide on the next steps.

Separately, U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance has also commented on the situation, emphasizing optimism about halting the fighting:

They're the ones who have to take the final step. <...> It is going to be up to the Russians and Ukrainians now that each side knows what the other's terms for peace are. It's going to be up to them to come to an agreement and stop this brutal, brutal conflict.he said.