US Secretary of State Rubio to Skip NATO Foreign Ministers’ Meeting Amid Tensions Over Ukraine Plan

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will not attend next week’s meeting of NATO foreign ministers, despite growing concern among allies over Washington’s evolving Ukraine proposal, sources familiar with the matter said.

It is highly unusual for the United States’ top diplomat — traditionally the central figure in the transatlantic alliance — to miss the annual December gathering, especially as the agenda is expected to be dominated by intensive US diplomacy on the Ukraine war.

People briefed on Rubio’s schedule said he currently has no plans to travel to Brussels for the Wednesday–Thursday meeting and will instead send Deputy Secretary Christopher Landau. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity.

While Rubio stays away from the NATO talks, President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to visit Moscow next week for further discussions on Ukraine.

Rubio traveled to Switzerland last weekend for consultations with Ukrainian officials on a US-backed peace proposal that has drawn sharp criticism in Europe, where many see it as overly accommodating to Moscow. He also held talks with European national security advisers in Geneva.

A senior State Department official defended Rubio’s absence, arguing that the administration has already strengthened NATO by pushing allies to boost defense spending.

“Secretary Rubio has already attended dozens of meetings with NATO allies, and it would be completely impractical to expect him at every meeting,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “The historic foreign policy achievements in just 10 months of this administration speak for themselves.”

Washington’s initial proposal — drafted without input from Kyiv’s European partners — would have required Ukraine to withdraw from the eastern Donetsk region and effectively seen the United States recognize Donetsk, Crimea and Lugansk as Russian territory.

Following backlash from Kyiv and European capitals, the plan was revised, though the current version remains undisclosed.

Diplomatic uncertainty deepened on Friday when President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed Ukraine’s top negotiator, Andriy Yermak, after his aide became the subject of a corruption probe.