Rubio leads a U.S. team for Paris talks as Macron seeks unity on Ukraine

French President Emmanuel Macron (left) shakes hands with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio next to special envoy Steve Witkoff (center) and France’s foreign minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, before a meeting at the Élysée presidential palace in Paris on Thursday. Ludovic Marin/AFP via Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Ludovic Marin/AFP via Getty Images PARIS and KYIV — French President Emmanuel Macron hosted top diplomats from the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom and Ukraine on Thursday to discuss efforts toward a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, and try to salvage a fraying alliance between Europe and the Trump administration. “Everyone wants to get peace. A robust and sustainable peace,” Macron said while meeting the U.S. delegation at Élysée Palace. “The question is about phasing.” The U.S. delegation included Secretary of State Marco Rubio, special envoys Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg. Sponsor Message Ukraine invasion — explained Ukraine’s DIY drone makers are helping fighters on the front lines “Very productive meetings at Elysee Palace on efforts to end the Ukraine-Russia war,” Kellogg wrote on the social media platform X, along with a photograph of himself with Ukraine’s representatives. The State Department said Rubio later spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and said the administration has “now presented to all parties the outlines of a durable and lasting peace.” Witkoff has had multiple meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin, including last week in St. Petersburg, Russia. Ukraine has been pushing the U.S. to take a tougher stance on Russia, whose full-scale invasion of Ukraine launched in February 2022 and continues to claim lives. Speaking to journalists in Kyiv Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Witkoff “has adopted Russia’s strategy.” Ukraine invasion — explained Russia and Ukraine agree to stop fighting in the Black Sea Ukrainians have criticized Witkoff for statements made to Fox News that a potential peace deal could center on the status of five Ukrainian territories. The Kremlin illegally annexed the southern region of Crimea in 2014 and, since its full-scale invasion, has partially occupied the regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson. “It’s very dangerous because he’s consciously or unconsciously spreading Russian narratives,” Zelenskyy said. “And he does not have the mandate to discuss Ukrainian territories, because our territory belongs to our people.” Sponsor Message Asked about President Trump’s statement calling Russia’s deadly Palm Sunday strike on the northeastern of Sumy “a mistake,” Zelenskyy declined to criticize Trump and pointed out that Rubio had condemned the strike. Ukraine’s president did add that European leaders were far more forceful in their condemnation, slamming Russia for a strike that killed 35 civilians and injured 100. Europe Russia making fewer territorial gains in Ukraine in 2025 Russia making fewer territorial gains in Ukraine in 2025 Listen · 4:57 4:57 Transcript Download