"The US has put forward a number of quite interesting, even useful proposals for consideration. The Americans could very easily exert real pressure and real influence on Kiev," Ushakov said, praising Washington's ability to influence Ukraine, N1 reports.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently said that the US is making Ukraine's post-war security guarantees conditional on it ceding part of its territory to Russia, particularly Donbass, in the east.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio later said that it was a "lie" from the Ukrainian president.
The US minister reiterated that he is not pressuring Kiev to cede territory.
"We explained to the Ukrainian side what the Russians are demanding. We are not advocating for it. We laid it out. The choice is theirs. It is not up to us to decide for them. We never told them they had to accept or reject," Rubio added.
Rubio also said that any guarantees for Ukraine's security can only be given after the war is over, arguing that such a measure before reaching an agreement would constitute direct participation in the conflict.
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