US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Photo: REUTERS/Jeenah Moon

His comment followed the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska last Friday, which concluded with no breakthroughs although both sides said the talks were productive.  

“It was agreed to by all that the best way to end this conflict is through a full peace deal. There’s no doubt about that. I mean, who would be against the fact that tomorrow we came to you and said, ‘We have a full peace deal, and it’s done.’  Now, whether there needs to be a ceasefire on the way there, well, we’ve advocated for that. Unfortunately, the Russians as of now have not agreed to that. But the ideal here, what we’re aiming for here, is not a ceasefire. What we ultimately are aiming for is an end to this war.”

New sanctions on Russia haven’t altered the direction of the conflict, Rubio said. President Trump and President Volodymyr Zelenskiy plan to meet at the White House on Monday together with several European leaders, including the British Prime Minister, the French President, the Italian Prime Minister, the German Chancellor, the Finnish President, the NATO Secretary General, and the President of the European Commission.

The meeting may be the prelude for a trilateral meeting between the US, Russian and Ukrainian presidents later this month.