Paris, France - Secretary of State Marco Rubio will be grilled by top Group of Seven (G7) ministers on Monday, who seek to ensure that Ukraine gets a fair settlement with Russia and there is no further escalation in Iran.
Rubio will be faced with fierce questioning during a meeting of ministers from the leading industrialized nations of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the US. In particular, G7 leaders will focus on Ukraine and Iran.
The meeting coincides with US-mediated talks with Moscow and Kyiv in Abu Dhabi, scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, which will focus on ending the Ukraine war.
Europe is worried Kyiv could be forced to accept disadvantageous conditions and that the US could offer Russia new security guarantees over the heads of the Europeans.
"For Europe, it is clear: We do not need to establish a new security architecture for Europe," said German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul as he headed to the talks, adding that Europe "must have a place at the table."
Trump stoked fears of a US pivot toward the Kremlin by predicting a "very big" deal with Russia involving not only Ukraine but "all of Europe."
Before leaving for Paris, however, Rubio said the postwar security infrastructure of Europe is "one of the key topics that's been raised repeatedly in every conversation any time negotiations have been discussed."
"We obviously have to get past the conflict to get to that point," he noted.
On Iran, Trump has not ruled out new strikes, including at so-called Pickaxe Mountain, a suspected nuclear site which Tehran denies is such a facility.
G7 leaders are eager to see a resolution and shipping traffic return to normal in the Strait of Hormuz energy transit hub.
"We certainly cannot afford any military escalation at this point," said Wadephul, adding the G7 talks would "focus on identifying ways to ensure it is indeed avoided."