In contrast to Marco Rubio, Vice President JD Vance expresses ‘optimism’ about the end of the war in Ukraine
Vance's remarks came in Rome, as part of his official visit, before a meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Vance in East Palestine, Ohio/ Rebecca Droke
U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday expressed optimism that negotiations with Russia could end the war in Ukraine, describing it as a "very brutal" conflict.
Vance's remarks came in Rome as part of an official visit, ahead of a meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
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"Even in the past 24 hours, we think we have some interesting things to report on," the Republican leader said.
However, Vance's optimistic tone contrasted with the warning issued the same day by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who noted that Washington could abandon efforts to reach a peace agreement if significant progress is not made in the coming days.
In that regard, after meeting with European leaders in Paris, Rubio was clear: "We're not going to continue with this endeavor for weeks and months on end. So we need to determine very quickly now, and I'm talking about a matter of days, whether or not this is doable in the next few weeks," according to a report from Reuters.
The statements by the two officials reflect the urgency of the Republican administration, led by President Donald Trump, to advance negotiations to resolve the conflict that began with Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Since then, diplomatic efforts have included talks in multiple formats, such as meetings in Saudi Arabia and Turkey, as well as prisoner exchanges mediated by third countries.
A new United Arab Emirates-mediated prisoner exchange
As part of efforts to keep dialogue channels open, Russia and Ukraine will conduct a new prisoner exchange this Saturday, according to a report from Reuters.
This swap, brokered by the United Arab Emirates, will involve nearly 500 prisoners, including 246 from each side and 46 wounded soldiers.
The UAE has played a key role as a mediator in this conflict, having facilitated 13 prisoner exchanges since the start of the war. This new exchange will bring the total number of captives released through its mediation to 3,233.
Context of the negotiations
However, Ukraine and European allies have expressed concern about being excluded from some of these discussions, especially those led by Washington and Moscow.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has insisted that any negotiations on Ukraine must include his country, while Russia has ruled out giving back occupied territories.
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