OAN Staff Abril Elfi
9:41 AM – Tuesday, August 19, 2025
Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised President Donald Trump for the progress he is making toward securing a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.
On Monday, Rubio appeared on Fox News‘ “Jesse Waters Prime Time,” where he hailed Trump as “the only leader in the world” who has proven he is capable of brokering a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia, adding that the Monday talks were “unprecedented.”
“After three years of deadlock, and no talks, and no change in circumstances, this is the first time where there seems to be some movement,” the secretary said. “This has been going on for three-and-a-half years. A lot of people have died, a lot of territories exchanged back-and-forth, so it’s not an easy thing to unwind, but nothing was happening in this war. Literally, the only option we were given under the previous administration was continue to fund Ukraine for however much they need, for however long it takes.”
Advertisement
Rubio pointed out that leaders throughout the globe are now “actually talking about pathways toward ending [the war in Ukraine],” which is in contrast to the stalemate during the Biden administration.
“It’s going to take a little bit more work, and a little bit more time, but we are making progress,” Rubio argued. “It’s not me saying it, that is virtually every leader there [on Monday] said that.”
He noted that under former President Joe Biden, the fighting in Ukraine was nothing more than a “stalemated war of death and destruction,” and there was no plan other than to continue giving billions in weapons to Ukraine.
“That’s the other dynamic that’s changed – we’re no longer giving Ukraine weapons, we’re no longer giving Ukraine money, we are now selling them weapons and European countries are paying for it through NATO. They are using NATO to buy the weapons and transferring them to Ukraine,” Rubio pointed out. “That’s another big change from the way this war was approached under the Biden administration.”
On Monday, the president met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders, following his previous meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
According to reports, citing purported remarks from German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Putin has agreed to meet with Zelensky, which would then be followed by another meeting with the United States’ involvement.
Rubio also emphasized that it’s a big win for the two countries to be open to talking to each other in general.
“I’m not saying they are going to leave that room with a peace deal, but I think the fact that people are now talking to each other – this wasn’t happening for three-and-a-half years,” he told Waters, adding that Trump has “made it a priority” to bring about peace in Ukraine.
“President Trump is the only leader in the world – acknowledged by all the Europeans – the only leader in the world that can talk to both [Putin and Zelenskyy] and bring them both to a meeting,” Rubio said. “We should be proud that we have a president who has made peace a priority in his administration.”
Stay informed! Receive breaking news alerts directly to your inbox for free. Subscribe here. https://www.oann.com/alerts
What do YOU think? Click here to jump to the comments!Sponsored Content Below