Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky spoke with his U.S. counterpart Marco Rubio on the phone yesterday. Following the call, Lipavsky wrote on social media that they had discussed Transatlantic cooperation, and that joint efforts with the United States to achieve a “just and lasting peace for Ukraine” remain a priority.
In a statement, the U.S. Department of State said Rubio had stressed in the phone call that U.S. President Donald Trump is determined to ensure a permanent end to the war in Ukraine.
“We talked about the need for mutually beneficial Transatlantic cooperation, for which it is desirable that Europe significantly increase its responsibility for its security. Working with the US to achieve a just and lasting peace for Ukraine remains a priority,” said Lipavsky. He described the conversation with Rubio as good.
“Secretary of State Marco Rubio called Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky today from Washington,” said U.S. state department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce. “Secretary Rubio emphasized President Trump’s determination to bring a durable end to the Russia-Ukraine war. Secretary Rubio and Foreign Minister Lipavsky reaffirmed the importance of U.S.-Czech relations across the globe, including our support of peace and stability, increasing defense spending for NATO, and buying U.S. technology to help meet Czechia’s energy needs.”
Ukraine has been resisting Russian military aggression since February 2022. Western countries, including the United States, sided with Kyiv after the start of the Russian invasion, provided Ukraine with military equipment, and imposed sanctions against Russia. However, in January, Donald Trump returned to the White House and changed the U.S. approach to Russia.
Trump, along with his Vice President J.D. Vance, met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy at the White House on Friday, but the meeting ended in an acrimonious dispute. Trump and Vance insisted on the need to be accommodating to Russian President Vladimir Putin in order to negotiate peace. Trump also claimed that Zelenskiy was not sufficiently grateful to him and was “not ready for peace”.
The Ukrainian president has repeatedly said he wants peace, but his country needs security guarantees to protect it from further Russian aggression in the future. He has thanked the United States many times for its support.
In an interview with ABC, Rubio accused Zelenskiy of trying to thwart the peace process with Russia. All that matters is getting Putin to negotiate an end to the war, Rubio said.
