By Kanishka Singh
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed “the need for bold diplomacy” to end the Russia-Ukraine war in a call on Thursday with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, the State Department said.
The call comes a day after U.S. President Donald Trump discussed the war in Ukraine in phone calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in Trump’s first big step toward diplomacy in a conflict he has promised to end.
“They (Rubio and Sybiha) discussed the need for bold diplomacy to end the war in a negotiated manner leading to a sustainable peace,” the State Department said in a statement, adding that the U.S. top diplomat also underscored Washington’s commitment to Ukrainian independence.
Trump said on Wednesday he did not think it was practical for Ukraine to join NATO and that it was unlikely Ukraine will get back all of its land.
Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. It had annexed Crimea in 2014.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Rod Nickel)
