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British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer told Donald Trump that he wanted to see “positive” talks between senior American and Ukrainian officials who would open the way to resumption of Washington’s military aid and intelligence sharing with kyiv.
Starmer The advocacy for improving the links between the United States and Ukraine came during a call with the American president on Monday, while Marco Rubio, the Secretary of State, arrived in the Saudi city of Djeddah for high-level talks.
“The Prime Minister said that he hoped there would be a positive result in talks that would restart assistance in the United States and intelligence,” a spokesperson for Downing Street on Monday. The White House did not publish its account of the conversation.
Tuesday talks in Saudi Arabia take place at a pivotal time, about 10 days after a public spit in the White House between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Trump on the origins of the origins of Large -scale invasion of Ukraine Russia And the future of American aid while Washington tries to negotiate the end of the conflict.
Trump has since cut military aid and information sharing in Kyiv, but Zelenskyy made some openings to the White House during last week, including an commitment to sign an agreement giving the United States access to critical minerals in Ukraine, which caused a spill of the friction. Addressing journalists during his flight to Saudi Arabia on Monday, Rubio said he hoped that military aid could be restored.
“I think that the notion of aid break, in general, is something I hope that we can resolve. Obviously, what is happening tomorrow will be the key to this, “said Rubio.
Trump was criticized at the national and international level for having exerted too much pressure on Ukraine to make concessions and give an advantage to Russia in talks on a peace agreement that Washington manages on parallel tracks. Russian and Ukrainian officials have not launched direct negotiations.
While Trump threatened Russia with additional sanctions and prices last week, he was publicly critical of Zelenskyy – including calls for elections in Ukraine that could lead to his enlatal. Addressing Air Force One journalists when he returned to Florida Washington on Sunday, Trump maintained the pressure on kyiv.
“I want them to want peace, right?” Said the American president.
“Well, at the moment, they have not shown it insofar as they should. I think that for the moment, they have not done so, but I think they will be, and I think it will become obvious in the next two or three days, “he said.
Starmer has positioned itself as one of the best European mediators in the conflict. A Downing Street spokesperson said the Prime Minister told Trump that British officials had spoken to Ukrainian officials this weekend, receiving kyiv insurance as they “remain attached to lasting peace.”
On Saturday, Starmer will host a virtual meeting of a group of mainly European countries and Commonwealth wishing to help obtain a peace agreement between kyiv and Moscow.
