The United States will know in a matter of weeks if Russia is serious about peace with Ukraine, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday.
European nations have accused Moscow of stalling over Washington's call for a ceasefire.
U.S. President Donald Trump, who has promised to bring a quick end to the three-year-old war, has for weeks said he believes Russia's Vladimir Putin is committed to peace.
Reuters on Friday cited unnamed sources as saying the White House has grown wary of Moscow's intentions in recent days, although Trump continues to signal publicly his belief that Putin wants to end the war.
"We will know soon enough, in a matter of weeks, not months, whether Russia is serious about peace or not. I hope they are," Rubio said after a two-day NATO meeting in Brussels.
He added that Trump is not interested in a “delay tactic.”
"If this is dragging things out, President Trump's not going to fall into the trap of endless negotiations about negotiations," Rubio told reporters, adding that the U.S. is sounding out the Kremlin’s true intentions.
"We're testing to see if the Russians are interested in peace... Their actions— not their words, their actions—will determine whether they're serious or not, and we intend to find that out sooner rather than later."
Moscow rejected a U.S. proposal in March for a full 30-day ceasefire after Ukraine said it would agree. The warring sides then agreed to a limited pause in attacks on each other's energy infrastructure, which both accuse the other of violating. Washington says it is still in talks with both sides.
U.S. President Donald Trump, who has promised to bring a quick end to the three-year-old war, has for weeks said he believes Russia's Vladimir Putin is committed to peace.
Reuters on Friday cited unnamed sources as saying the White House has grown wary of Moscow's intentions in recent days, although Trump continues to signal publicly his belief that Putin wants to end the war.
"We will know soon enough, in a matter of weeks, not months, whether Russia is serious about peace or not. I hope they are," Rubio said after a two-day NATO meeting in Brussels.
He added that Trump is not interested in a “delay tactic.”
"If this is dragging things out, President Trump's not going to fall into the trap of endless negotiations about negotiations," Rubio told reporters, adding that the U.S. is sounding out the Kremlin’s true intentions.
"We're testing to see if the Russians are interested in peace... Their actions— not their words, their actions—will determine whether they're serious or not, and we intend to find that out sooner rather than later."
Moscow rejected a U.S. proposal in March for a full 30-day ceasefire after Ukraine said it would agree. The warring sides then agreed to a limited pause in attacks on each other's energy infrastructure, which both accuse the other of violating. Washington says it is still in talks with both sides.
Europe needs to 'do more’
Meanwhile, Rubio said European NATO members need to work towards a target of spending 5% of their GDP on defense in order for the military bloc to remain a “real alliance.” He added that 5% was not an immediate requirement.
“I'm not saying overnight, but... we think that's what NATO allies need to be spending for NATO to face the threats that it itself has identified and articulated,” Rubio was quoted by the European Broadcast Union as saying.
He said the good news is that, for several reasons, most allies are spending much more than they were a few years ago.
“The first [reason] is the war in Ukraine, I think, has woken up a lot of people in the continent about real threats and real war,” he said.
“And the other is, I think, the pressure and the statements of President Trump that have been pretty consistent about increasing their spending.”
He added that he hoped a NATO summit in The Hague in June would see further spending commitments from NATO leaders, going on to clarify that the message was not merely “about money” but about capabilities.
“In order for NATO to be stronger it needs partners that are stronger,” Rubio said. “The United States commits a lot to NATO... but it has to be a real alliance. And that means that our alliance partners have to increase their own capabilities.”
The secretary of state reiterated Washington’s commitment to NATO but emphasized that its partners need to do more.
“They've all indicated they want to do more,” he said. “They've begun to do more. And that trend needs to continue.”
“I'm not saying overnight, but... we think that's what NATO allies need to be spending for NATO to face the threats that it itself has identified and articulated,” Rubio was quoted by the European Broadcast Union as saying.
He said the good news is that, for several reasons, most allies are spending much more than they were a few years ago.
“The first [reason] is the war in Ukraine, I think, has woken up a lot of people in the continent about real threats and real war,” he said.
“And the other is, I think, the pressure and the statements of President Trump that have been pretty consistent about increasing their spending.”
He added that he hoped a NATO summit in The Hague in June would see further spending commitments from NATO leaders, going on to clarify that the message was not merely “about money” but about capabilities.
“In order for NATO to be stronger it needs partners that are stronger,” Rubio said. “The United States commits a lot to NATO... but it has to be a real alliance. And that means that our alliance partners have to increase their own capabilities.”
The secretary of state reiterated Washington’s commitment to NATO but emphasized that its partners need to do more.
“They've all indicated they want to do more,” he said. “They've begun to do more. And that trend needs to continue.”
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