WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday said the next few days would determine if Russian President Vladimir Putin was serious about peace in Ukraine.

Speaking to CBS, the Secretary of State said he had also discussed what he called the difficult operating conditions of the US embassy in Moscow when he spoke to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during a phone call.

Lavrov and Rubio discussed the Ukraine situation, the situation around Palestine and in the Middle East in general as well as the removal of “unilateral barriers” set by the previous US administration, Moscow said.

In a call initiated by the US, both sides agreed to maintain contacts to resolve problems in bilateral relations, “in the interests of removing the unilateral barriers to mutually beneficial trade, economic and investment cooperation inherited from the previous administration,” the Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

Calls Lavrov to discuss ‘removal of barriers’ set by Biden administration

It was not immediately clear what barriers were discussed.

The US under then-President Joe Biden and Kyiv’s allies around the world imposed a series of sanctions on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine three years ago, aimed at weakening the Russian economy and limiting the Kremlin’s war efforts.

The US State Department said Rubio reaffirmed in the call Trump’s commitment to finding an end to the conflict in Ukraine. “In addition, they discussed the opportunity to potentially work together on a number of other bilateral issues,” it stated, without providing further detail.

Russia said Lavrov and Rubio “expressed their mutual willingness to interact on pressing international issues, including the settlement around Ukraine, the situation around Palestine and in general in the Middle East in general”.

Top US officials to visit S. Arabia

US and Russian officials would meet in Saudi Arabia in the coming days to start talks aimed at ending the Ukraine conflict, a US lawmaker and a source familiar with the planning disclosed.

US Representative Michael McCaul told Reuters that besides Rubio, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and White House Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff would travel to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for talks.

It was not immediately clear who they would meet from Russia.

McCaul said the aim of the talks was to arrange a meeting between US President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelenskiy “to finally bring peace and end this conflict”.

Published in Dawn, February 17th, 2025