U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio addressed questions about the war in Ukraine during a meeting with journalists in Samarkand on October 19, stating that no one would emerge victorious from the conflict. According to Rubio, U.S. President Donald Trump is prepared to support initiatives aimed at ending the war between Russia and Ukraine.
"The president has made it clear that he wants the war to end. He wants the war between Ukraine and Russia to come to a conclusion. We will continue to do everything in our power to contribute to resolving the conflict," Rubio said. "No one wins in the war in Ukraine. People are dying every single day. Every day, there are explosions and destruction," he added.
Citing Trump, Rubio stated that 25,000 people are losing their lives every month as a result of the war.
Rubio also responded to statements made by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy regarding the temporary suspension and subsequent resumption of U.S. intelligence sharing. Zelenskyy had previously discussed the issue in an interview with NBC News.
"I don't know where he gets this information or why he is speaking to the press about it. There was no pause in the transmission of intelligence. I repeat: Zelensky should be focusing on ending the war right now. Both we and Russia need to focus on that as well," Rubio said.
The Secretary of State also addressed earlier reports suggesting that the United States had failed to warn Ukraine about a missile attack on Kyiv. According to Rubio, a malfunction had occurred in Ukraine's early warning system.
"A software issue arose a few days ago. U.S. European Command is looking into the situation," he stated.
During the press exchange, a journalist asked Rubio what evidence suggested that Russian President Vladimir Putin was willing to participate in peace negotiations.
"What kind of evidence? This isn't a criminal case; it's diplomacy. In diplomacy, you keep moving forward," Rubio responded.
He also commented on Trump's decision to delay imposing additional sanctions against Russia.
"Trump has paused the sanctions for 60 days because he wants to see if there is a possibility for the ongoing negotiations to succeed," Rubio said.
Rubio arrived in Samarkand on October 18, accompanied by more than 200 business representatives, to participate in the C5+1 summit. He was welcomed by Saida Mirziyoyeva, Head of Uzbekistan's Presidential Administration, and Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov.
During his visit, Rubio is scheduled to meet with representatives of the five Central Asian countries before traveling to Mumbai and Jamnagar in India.
Explaining the purpose of his visit to Uzbekistan, Rubio said:
"You know, typically, one might visit a country because a crisis or problem has arisen there, or to attend a conference. However, there are also countries with which we simply wish to develop our relations. Our trips to Greece and other nations a few weeks ago fall into this category. Just a few weeks prior to this visit, we traveled to Latin America, and now we are visiting Central Asia."