The president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, has responded to the statements of the U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, in which he spoke of a stalemate in the war with Russia. The Ukrainian leader has called on Washington to strengthen economic pressure on Moscow and ensure Kiev's air superiority. His words come on the eve of a key meeting this Friday in Miami, where envoys from the Donald Trump Administration will present Ukraine with new proposals to halt hostilities.
"We are not in a diplomatic dead end," Zelensky asserted during a press conference in the city of Priluki, recently hit by a Russian missile that left 22 dead. According to the Ukrainian news agency Ukrinform, the head of state has criticized the double standards of certain partners: "On one hand, you cannot negotiate with the Russians on some economic projects for the future and, on the other, say that we are at a standstill."
The leader has called on the United States and other allies to impose sanctions on the Russian arms sector without delay and strangle Vladimir Putin's economy. "Silence Russia. Stop giving them money with your sales. Turn on Starlink for us, for Ukraine," Zelensky urged, warning that China is about to complete a communications system similar to Starlink that will likely be made available to Moscow, according to the Ukrainian digital newspaper Ukrainska Pravda.
With the aim of changing the dynamics on the front, Zelensky has insisted that it is essential to dominate the airspace, and he compared Ukraine's situation to the defensive aid that the United States provided to Israel against Iran. "Just control the skies to protect yourselves. The United States has this capability and it costs them nothing to help," he emphasized. In his view, if the West grants him that military advantage, Putin "will lose everything in two or three months" and will be forced to accept a negotiation process.
Zelensky's statements directly respond to Marco Rubio's words in Lisbon, where the U.S. Secretary of State lamented that diplomatic efforts were not bearing fruit because the conflict had entered a "stalemate."
New proposals in Miami to try to end the war
This exchange of messages precedes an intense diplomatic agenda promoted by Washington. According to the U.S. portal Axios, the envoys of the President of the United States, Donald Trump, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, will meet this Friday in Miami with a Ukrainian delegation and European officials to present "new ideas and proposals" for peace.
The priority of the Trump Administration, which already held a meeting on Thursday —with Kushner and Witkoff present— to outline its initiative, is to achieve some kind of progress before the midterm elections on November 3 in the United States and before the arrival of winter in Ukraine. Among the options being considered, according to Axios, is a partial ceasefire that would stop attacks on energy infrastructure and secure grain shipments.
At the Miami summit, scheduled for two days, high-ranking Ukrainian officials will participate, such as the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Kirilo Budanov; the head of Foreign Intelligence Services, Rustem Umerov, and diplomatic advisor Sergi Kislitsia. National security advisors from the United Kingdom, France, and Germany will also attend, in addition to representatives from NATO and the European Union. The core of the discussions, according to Axios, will revolve around possible security guarantees for Ukraine and a prosperity plan for the post-war phase, in an attempt by the White House to align positions before a potential trip by the U.S. envoys to Moscow at the end of this month.