Trump's patience with Russia 'not infinite,' Rubio warns as US sanctions loom
U.S. President Donald Trump has the "opportunity and the options" to impose new sanctions against Russia, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Sept. 23.
Rubio's remarks followed Trump's unexpected reversal on the war, declaring earlier that "Ukraine is in a position to fight and win all of Ukraine back" after meeting President Volodymyr Zelensky.
"The president has shown extraordinary patience in terms of not assessing additional sanctions in the hopes of having a breakthrough," Rubio said at a U.N. Security Council Ministerial Meeting on Ukraine.
"The president is a very patient man; he's very committed to peace, but his patience is not infinite."
Rubio said that Trump has the authority to sell "defensive weaponry, and potentially offensive weaponry" to Ukraine, while stressing that Washington still seeks a negotiated end to the war.
"It will end at a negotiating table. That's where this war will end," he added.
The comments come just a month after Trump hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin for a summit in Alaska, where he promised to facilitate a direct meeting between Kyiv and Moscow leaders.
Those efforts stalled as Putin invited Zelensky to Moscow, a proposal Kyiv rejected, with Zelensky insisting that talks in Russia were "impossible" while "my country's under missiles."
Zelensky has repeatedly voiced readiness to meet Putin on neutral ground, a proposition the Kremlin has consistently avoided.
Trump has tied potential new sanctions on Moscow — intended to pressure it into meaningful talks — to tougher European measures, criticizing the EU for continuing to import Russian energy.
In August, Washington targeted India, one of Russia's largest oil buyers, with tariffs due to Russian crude purchases, though Indian officials insisted their imports would continue.
Trump said on Sept. 23 that the U.S. will "continue to supply weapons to NATO for NATO to do what they want with them," as his administration begins sending arms to Kyiv under a new NATO-backed deal.
The first aid package, approved Sept. 16, included Patriot and HIMARS missiles.
