OAN Staff James Meyers and Brooke Mallory
4:42 PM – Tuesday, May 13, 2025
President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will assume the role of chief negotiator on his behalf, representing the United States at the Russia-Ukraine peace talks scheduled to take place in Turkey on Thursday.
Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is also expected to attend the peace talks as well. He will be part of the U.S. delegation led by Rubio, alongside fellow envoy Keith Kellogg.
The 47th GOP president announced that Rubio would make the trip during his speech to Saudi leaders and businessmen — on his first stop in Saudi Arabia.
“Talks are being held in Turkey later this week — probably on Thursday, and they could produce some pretty good results. Our people are going to be going there, Marco is going to be going there, others are going to be going, and we’ll see if we can get it done,” Trump said.
President Trump withheld further details regarding the meeting, though insiders who reached out the press cited the challenges posed for Trump by the short notice — particularly given his ongoing three-country tour of the Middle East.
Trump told reporters at the White House that he “would fly there if [he] thought it would be helpful,” but there were no indications late on Tuesday that preparations were being made for a brief side trip to Turkey.
Zelensky has made it clear that he will not engage with lower-level Russian officials, insisting that only a direct dialogue with Putin can lead to a ceasefire and a resolution to the war. The Ukrainian leader has also stated that if the talks do not yield worthwhile results, it would indicate that Russia is not ready for diplomacy, and he has called for intensified sanctions in such a scenario.
Additionally, European leaders have emphasized the need for a ceasefire before substantive negotiations can occur — and they have warned of more sanctions if Russia refuses to engage.
The last face-to-face meeting between Zelensky and Putin occurred in December 2019 in Paris, France.
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