United States President Donald Trump announced on Thursday that a meeting in Munich between senior officials from Moscow, Kiev and Washington is scheduled to take place on Friday, February 14.
"Tomorrow there's a meeting in Munich. Russia will be there with our representatives. Ukraine is invited, too," Trump told reporters at the White House on the eve of the Munich Security Conference.
He did not indicate which officials from these countries would be part of the meetings, but stressed that "there will be senior officials from Russia, Ukraine and the United States," to find a way to end the nearly three-year war.
The White House did not issue a statement about the meeting, but it was previously announced that US Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Trump's envoy for Russia and Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, will attend the Munich conference.
Ukrainian media quoted a spokesman for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as denying that a meeting with Russian representatives was planned.
"No talks with the Russians are expected in Munich," Dmytro Lytvyn said, according to a statement quoted in the media.
Vance and Rubio will meet with Zelensky before the opening of the annual conference, which brings together political leaders, military officers and diplomats in the German city. It is not clear whether Rubio will arrive in time for an early meeting, after his military plane suffered a mechanical problem 90 minutes after takeoff and was forced to return to Washington, State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said.
Before departing, Rubio said he and Vance would meet with Zelensky, "and at some point ... we'll have to engage with our Russian counterparts as well . "
"Obviously, we will talk to Ukraine and all of our allies and partners in Europe and around the world about this issue," Rubio said in a radio interview on February 13.
Lytvyn stressed that Ukraine's position remains unchanged: Ukraine should first talk with the United States, while Europe should be a participant in "any serious talks for the sake of a real and lasting peace . "
"And, only a common position should be on the table for talks with the Russians. We do not meet with the Russians at an empty table. There is currently nothing on the table," Lytvyn said.
Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 to prevent Ukraine from moving away from its influence and closer to Europe.
Trump shocked European allies when he announced on February 12 that he had had a more than hour-long phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin and that they had agreed to begin peace talks.
Trump also spoke with Zelensky and on February 13 said he had assured him that he would have a seat at the negotiating table with Russia to end the war.
On February 13, Rubio spoke with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha about the need for “bold diplomacy” to end the war, according to a State Department statement.
In the radio interview, Rubio said there are "many complicated issues that need to be discussed," including territorial claims, gun control, language and cultural issues.
"All of this will have to be resolved" along with "durable security guarantees for Ukraine," he said, adding that Europeans will have to be willing to take responsibility for this.
"It's a tough job, but yesterday was the first step in a long journey that lies ahead," he said, referring to Trump's phone call with Putin.
"I will repeat what the president said... the killings and deaths must stop in Ukraine," he stressed./REL (A2 Televizion)
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