US State Secretary Reaches Agreement With EU On ‘Maximum Pressure’ On Russia

To end the war.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and EU diplomatic chief Kaja Kallas have agreed to ‘continue exerting maximum pressure’ on Russia to end the war in Ukraine.

They discussed coordination of policy towards Moscow during a telephone conversation, a source familiar with the content of the conversation told Bloomberg.

Rubio and Kallas also talked about strengthening cooperation between the EU and the U.S., shared foreign policy priorities and the problems posed by China.

After taking office as secretary of state, Rubio said that ending the war between Russia and Ukraine would become official U.S. policy under President Donald Trump.

He promised to make every effort to do so, but emphasised that such conflicts are not solved by loud public statements, but require ‘tough diplomatic work’, which he is ready to start.

At the same time, Rubio noted that sanctions, as well as their lifting, could play an important role in negotiations to end the war. He called the restrictions imposed against Russia ‘leverage’ that the U.S. can use to secure a peace agreement.

Kallas also said that EU sanctions on Russia would not be lifted until negotiations on the Russia-Ukraine conflict are over.

‘Whatever the negotiations are, we will be in a much weaker position’ with an early lifting of restrictions, Kallas noted. She emphasised that this is also not in the US interest.

At the same time, the EU is preparing the 16th package of sanctions against Russia for the third anniversary of the outbreak of full-scale war in Ukraine.

It will include restrictions on importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) and aluminium to the European market, disconnecting new Russian banks from the SWIFT international payment system and blacklisting dozens of ships of Russia's ‘shadow fleet’.

Earlier, Trump threatened to strengthen sanctions against Moscow, up to a full embargo on exports of Russian goods, if Russian President Vladimir Putin does not end the war.

He said Washington ‘will have no choice’ but to impose ‘tariffs, taxes and sanctions on everything’ Russia sells to the United States and other countries if Putin does not ‘quickly’ agree to a settlement.

‘We can do it (end the war. - TMT) the good way or the bad way. The good way is always better. Make a deal. No more lives should be lost,’ Trump emphasised.

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