US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House representative Steve Witkoff will head to Europe this week for critical talks to bring an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine and resume negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program.
In a State Department statement, Rubio and Witkoff will meet with European counterparts in Paris on Wednesday and Thursday. Rubio is scheduled to sit down with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot to talk about the war in Ukraine, tensions in the Middle East, and possibilities of re-engaging Iran on a nuclear agreement.
Witkoff will also make a trip to Rome later this week, where he is set to attend a session that features Iranian officials, a US official familiar with the plans confirmed.
This diplomatic effort follows increasing frustration within the Trump administration about stagnant peace negotiations in Ukraine. While Russia maintains its aggressive stance, President Trump has increasingly blamed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for the long-running conflict that started with Moscow’s 2022 invasion.
The visits also represent the start of a cautious attempt to determine if Washington and Tehran can achieve a sustainable deal on Iran’s nuclear program. On Saturday and Sunday, the two nations engaged in indirect negotiations in Oman, which both sides called constructive but far from producing an agreement.
Trump has reaffirmed his threat to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities with military force if the talks fall through. On Tuesday, he sat down with senior national security aides at the White House to discuss options on Iran’s growing nuclear program.
Since coming back to office, Trump has revived a “maximum pressure” policy against Tehran, ditching the 2015 nuclear deal and reimposing broad sanctions. Although there were several indirect talks during former President Biden’s presidency, there was little progress, and Iran’s nuclear program has grown substantially.
