Rubio acknowledged the effectiveness of Ukraine's strikes deep into Russian territory
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was a strategic mistake, and that Moscow may never achieve through military means the goals it is currently advancing in negotiations.
Speaking at a hearing in the U.S. Senate, the head of American diplomacy emphasized that recent developments on the front lines demonstrate the effectiveness of the Ukrainian defense forces.
“Almost no one in the world—and, I think, even some Russians—has any doubt left that the invasion of Ukraine was a strategic mistake. Russia will certainly not achieve the goals it declared on the first day. And Russia may never achieve by military means the goals it is now demanding in negotiations,” Rubio stated.
According to him, the Ukrainian army has recently demonstrated successes on the battlefield and is conducting increasingly effective long-range operations deep into Russian territory.
“Over the past month, Ukrainian forces have achieved certain successes on the battlefield. Ukraine is also increasingly effectively delivering long-range strikes deep into Russia and against critical targets of the Russian economy,” the secretary of state noted.
He also highlighted the significant losses suffered by the Russian army.
“According to the U.S. Department of Defense, for the first time in history, the number of Russian combat deaths has exceeded the number of wounded. So Ukrainians are not only fighting bravely—they are fighting effectively,” Rubio emphasized.
At the same time, the Secretary of State stressed that the United States is convinced that the war can only be ended through diplomatic means.
According to him, despite the lack of noticeable progress recently, Washington is not abandoning its participation in the peace process and continues to seek opportunities for a political resolution of the conflict.
“Our role is to determine whether there is a path to a peaceful settlement. Ultimately, this war will end at the negotiating table. However, achieving this is difficult, as the parties’ positions on ending the war remain very far apart,” the U.S. Secretary of State stated.
Thus, Washington acknowledges the effectiveness of Ukrainian military operations and strikes on Russian territory, but at the same time believes that a final end to the war is possible only through the negotiation process.
This was reported by Ukrainian journalist Ostap Yarysh in Washington.
Ukraine will continue to increase the intensity of strikes on military targets on Russian territory to weaken its ability to wage war.
Strikes on oil infrastructure on Russian territory will continue to intensify.
