US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has warned that the war in Ukraine has reached a “strategic stalemate” that risks escalating into a wider conflict, with little prospect of a negotiated settlement. In an interview with Greek daily Kathimerini published on Thursday, Rubio said Russia's demand for full control of Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region remained a major obstacle to peace negotiations. “Right now, there don’t seem to be prospects of a negotiated settlement,” he said. “The Russians have defined victory as the totality of Donetsk; they’ve repeatedly stated that as their goal and they continue to state that as their goal. And that’s a condition that, for Ukraine, is simply unacceptable,” he added. Rubio, America's top diplomat, made the remarks during a two-day visit to Athens, where he held talks with senior Greek officials on defense cooperation and regional security. Rubio also suggested that the full-scale war, now in its fifth year, had not unfolded as Russian President Vladimir Putin originally intended. “I don’t think that was Putin’s plan for this war, so it hasn’t gone the way he planned it,” he said. Washington has pursued diplomatic efforts to end the fighting since Donald Trump returned to the White House in January 2025, but negotiations have so far failed to produce a breakthrough toward ending the war. Rubio, however, reiterated that Washington remained prepared to help facilitate a negotiated settlement, despite the lack of progress. “We think it would be good for Russia and Ukraine, but so far, it’s proving elusive,” he said. Rubio warned that the prolonged deadlock carried the risk of escalation beyond Ukraine's borders. “Strategic stalemates are only broken in one of two ways: a) through a negotiated settlement, or b) through escalation by one side or both that ends up spreading beyond the confines of the original conflict,” he said. The US secretary of state expressed particular concern about the possibility of sabotage in countries neighboring Ukraine. “We’re worried about a sabotage operation in a neighboring country that can spiral out of control,” he said. His warning comes amid growing concern across Europe over suspected Russian-linked sabotage and cyberattacks, as well as Russian drone incursions and other airspace violations affecting NATO countries. Poland, which borders Ukraine, Belarus and Russia's heavily militarized Kaliningrad exclave, has been particularly concerned about the risk of the conflict spilling onto NATO territory. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk warned last month that Moscow could launch drone or missile strikes against countries supporting Ukraine and portray them as accidental in an attempt to test the alliance's response. Russia could intensify energy strikes Rubio also warned that Moscow appeared determined to exploit the approaching winter by intensifying attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure. “I think there are clear indications that Russia will use the upcoming winter as something they want to use to destroy what remains of the electric grid in Ukraine and force them into capitulation,” he said. Russia has repeatedly targeted Ukraine's power generation and transmission infrastructure since launching its full-scale invasion in February 2022, leaving millions vulnerable to electricity and heating disruptions. Zelenskyy urges greater pressure on Moscow Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Thursday that Ukrainian negotiators would travel to the United States for talks on Friday and Saturday, urging Trump to increase pressure on Russia. Speaking during a visit to the northern town of Pryluky following a deadly Russian attack, Zelenskyy questioned Washington's approach to negotiations with Moscow. “One cannot, on the one hand, negotiate with the Russians about future economic projects, whilst on the other hand say that we find ourselves in some sort of... diplomatic stalemate,” he said. On Thursday evening, an American source familiar with the plan said that US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will meet Ukrainian representatives on Friday in Miami to discuss new ideas and try to produce a unified proposal for resolving the war in Ukraine.
