Sen. Marco Rubio slammed the Biden administration for not “defining” what the end of the Ukraine-Russian war will look like and said it will only end with a “negotiated settlement.”
“I’m not on Russia’s side, but unfortunately, the reality of it is that the way the war in Ukraine is going to end is with a negotiated settlement. And I want, and we want, and I believe Donald Trump wants, for Ukraine to have more leverage in that negotiation,” Mr. Rubio, Florida Republican, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday.
He said the former president “approaches these things” not like a politician, but as a businessman.
“It’s not going to be easy to do, but at least there’s a defined goal,” he said.
He said the Biden administration “has not defined what victory means in Ukraine.”
“They have not defined this is what victory looks like, and if you press them, they will tell you what I have just said to you, which is the way this conflict ultimately ends is with a negotiation,” he said. “And so we – I don’t know why we can’t just say that. And we hope that when that time comes, there is more leverage on the Ukrainian side than on the Russian side.”
His comments come after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited the United States last week for the United Nations General Assembly. He met with President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, along with Mr. Trump while he was in the U.S.
Mr. Trump has said before that he could end the Ukraine-Russian war quickly if he got a second stint in the White House.
After Mr. Trump and Mr. Zelenskyy met at Trump Towers in New York City Friday, he told Fox News that if he wins the election “we’re going to have a very fair, and I think actually rather rapid deal.”
“It should stop and the president wants it to stop,” he said of Mr. Zelenskyy. “And I’m sure [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin wants it to stop, and that’s a good combination. So we want to have a fair deal for everybody.”
When asked what he thought would be fair, he said, “It’s too early to say that,” but he has ideas.
Prior to the meeting, Mr. Trump and Mr. Zelenskyy spoke with reporters, where the former president touted his “very good relationship” with Mr. Zelenskyy and Mr. Putin.
Sen. Chris Coons said on “Fox News Sunday” that he was glad the two met.
“It’s important that there be conversations between President Zelenskyy and both Republican and Democratic leaders of our nation and candidates to be the next president of our nation,” the Connecticut Democrat, said, but noted that it was a little awkward that Mr. Trump mentioned his relationship with Mr. Putin.
“And you could see Zelenskyy sort of stiffen up and go, ‘Well, I hope you’re a better friend of Ukraine than you are a friend of Russia under Putin,’” Mr. Coons said. “So, it was a strikingly awkward moment.”
He went on to say that Mr. Putin is a “war criminal [that has carried out] horrific attacks” in Ukraine.
“We should not have a president of the United States saying that he is seeking to be a better friend of Vladimir Putin,” Mr. Coons said.
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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