World · Europe · 1 hr ago
Rubio urges Russia and Ukraine to focus on ending the war
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged Russia and Ukraine to focus on ending the war while visiting Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
He said the conflict could escalate or spread to another country, including through drone incidents or failed sabotage attacks.
Rubio said a possible meeting of U.S., Russian and Chinese leaders is being discussed, but it has not been finalized.
Reports say Ukraine could be excluded from that meeting, which would involve President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
The United States has repeatedly tried to help broker an end to the war, but Rubio said those efforts have not made the progress Washington wanted.
Trump has criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky over a peace deal, while Russia's war against Ukraine continues.
The U.S. says it will keep looking for ways to help end the war, but no summit or agreement has been confirmed.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Ukraine and Russia should focus on ending their war.
Rubio said the United States would continue trying to help bring the conflict to an end.
He said President Donald Trump remained open to efforts that could end the war, but progress had fallen short of US hopes.
Rubio warned that the war carried a risk of escalation and spreading into another country.
He made the remarks in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, during a visit to meet officials from the C5+1 grouping.
- Who
- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. He spoke about Ukraine, Russia and US President Donald Trump.
- What
- Rubio said Ukraine and Russia should focus on ending the war, and that the US would keep trying to help.
- When
- October 19, 2026.
- Where
- Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
- Why
- Rubio said the war had serious downsides, including a risk of escalation and spreading into another country.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Rubio landed in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
Rubio told reporters that Ukraine and Russia should focus on ending the war.
Rubio said the US would continue looking for opportunities to help end the conflict.
- Speaker
- Marco Rubio
- Location
- Samarkand, Uzbekistan
- Date
- October 19, 2026
- Diplomatic grouping
- C5+1: the United States and Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan
- US position
- The US will continue trying to help end the war
4 sources
What people are saying
Ukraine and Russia should be focused on ending the war between them
We see nothing good coming from this war
We've done everything we can, and we'll continue to do everything we can to help facilitate the end of that war