Latest / Early Edition with Ryan Bridge / Matt Terrill: Former Chief of Staff for Marco Rubio on the talks between the US and Russia on ending the war in Ukraine

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Matt Terrill: Former Chief of Staff for Marco Rubio on the talks between the US and Russia on ending the war in Ukraine · Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: So the United States and Russia are going to appoint
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: teams to negotiate ending the Ukraine War. You were Secretary
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: of State. Marco Rubio has finished up a for our
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: meeting with Russian officials in Saudi Arabia. Sergey Leverov, Russia's
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: foreign minister, says, Russia and the United States have agreed
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: to congrect to create conditions to restore cooperation in full
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: between the two nations.
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  Speaker 2: We did not just listen to each other, but we
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: heard each other. I have every reason to believe that
• 0:30
  Speaker 2: the American side understands our position.
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  Speaker 1: So what might have happened in that meeting? Marco Rubio's
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  Speaker 1: former chief of staff is a fellow by the name
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  Speaker 1: of Matt Terrell. He's in Milwaukee, and Matt joins me.
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  Speaker 3: Now, hello, Matt, Hey, great to be you're with you.
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  Speaker 1: What do you think happened in that for our meeting?
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  Speaker 3: Well, we'll see what comes out of the reporting on it.
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  Speaker 3: You know, what I can tell you is that it
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  Speaker 3: appears to be a first step in terms of negotiations here,
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  Speaker 3: particularly with Russia. And so the bottom line here is,
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  Speaker 3: you know, it's a first step.
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: Yes, Michael Rubo says the peace is a verb, not
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  Speaker 1: a noun, and it's all about incremental steps.
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  Speaker 3: That's right. Look, at the end of the day, actually
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  Speaker 3: speak louder than words and support and have meetings the
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  Speaker 3: support and have dialogue and discussions. But the end of
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  Speaker 3: the day comes down to action, and you get to
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  Speaker 3: see action on the side of Putin went to see
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  Speaker 3: action among other actors here particause it relates to Russia
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  Speaker 3: and deciding what happens here. But obviously ukrainily at that
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  Speaker 3: table as well. You know what President Trump spoke just
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  Speaker 3: a few days ago with Villainsky and you know the
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  Speaker 3: bottom line here, Steve Woodkoff and others on the foreign
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  Speaker 3: polity team of President Trump's team have been discussions with
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  Speaker 3: Ukraine officials and Russia officials now and it appears in
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  Speaker 3: Saudi Arabia. So you know, at the end of the day,
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  Speaker 3: it's going to come down in what the actions are.
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  Speaker 3: And clearly we'll have to see what that all means
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  Speaker 3: the main book, because the discussions about land and discussions
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  Speaker 3: about whether or not Ukraine would be able to join NATO,
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  Speaker 3: those are all things that are going to be discussed here, negotiated.
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  Speaker 3: Those are many of the key things that I think
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  Speaker 3: are going to be certainly on the table in the day.
• 2:00
  Speaker 3: You know, look, this war needs to end. That President
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  Speaker 3: Trump campaign down, any campaign and any miss warrant to negotiation,
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  Speaker 3: not to putting boots on the ground. So right now
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  Speaker 3: it comes down to with these discussions, having the discussions unfold. Again,
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  Speaker 3: what occurred here over the past few hours is just
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  Speaker 3: the first step. But you don't get to finalization negotiations
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  Speaker 3: without starting negotiations. And hopefully what we're seeing here in
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  Speaker 3: terms of a peaceful resolution and negotiate resolution here that
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  Speaker 3: won't require more bloodshed.
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: Well, when do you think the United States will talk
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  Speaker 1: to the Ukrainian side because they have to be part
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  Speaker 1: of the negotiations in the end.
• 2:35
  Speaker 3: Well, it's viral that they are and they have been.
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  Speaker 3: I mean, look, you saw Secretary of Rubio and others
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  Speaker 3: clearly state that, you know, the United States and President
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  Speaker 3: Trump have been in discussions, and Josh with Zelenski and
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  Speaker 3: so look at the end of the day, and it's
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  Speaker 3: port and recognize that they are at the table here clearly.
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  Speaker 3: Obviously you're seeing other voices here among Europe voice their
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  Speaker 3: thoughts on this. But look, the reality is it's going
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  Speaker 3: to come down to having they have both leaders, both
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  Speaker 3: Putin Angelums at the table here among other key key
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  Speaker 3: players here, they help bring this war to an end.
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  Speaker 3: But I think, you know, and it's repentitive here, redundant
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  Speaker 3: on this point. But really I think the key goal
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  Speaker 3: here in Saudi Arabia once too, at least get Putin
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  Speaker 3: and his team if you will, to the table. Now
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  Speaker 3: you can't start negotiations, so you actually get these key
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  Speaker 3: players to the table. And that was the first step here.
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  Speaker 3: It's not the only step. I think There's many more
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  Speaker 3: steps of course, are going to be needed here. But again,
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  Speaker 3: the goal here is to end this saying, you know,
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  Speaker 3: there's been reports, I don't know how accurate they are
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  Speaker 3: or not, the reports that you know, the Russian military
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  Speaker 3: has lost over one hundred and fifty thousand soldiers and
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  Speaker 3: obviously their economy is taking a hit by much of
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  Speaker 3: the recording we're saying. You know, I think at the
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  Speaker 3: end of the day, this this is something that in
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  Speaker 3: addition to you know, the lives sally lost in the
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  Speaker 3: Ukraine side, you know, this is something I need to
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  Speaker 3: come to an end. Present some campaign down that and
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  Speaker 3: that's something he wants to deliver on I think soon here.
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  Speaker 1: And you've been Michael Rubia as chief of Is he
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: good at this sort of stuff?
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  Speaker 3: Well, I worked with on his twenty fifteen campaign and
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  Speaker 3: when he was learning for president in twenty sixteen, he
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  Speaker 3: was able. When I recognize the least and many of
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  Speaker 3: those who work with him recognized, was his ability to
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  Speaker 3: dive deep into the foreign policy issues that don't always
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  Speaker 3: get the headlines. So, look, he has a very clear
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  Speaker 3: understanding of history. I think he is a very clear
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  Speaker 3: understanding of the key challenges that we are facing when
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  Speaker 3: it comes to your question of negotiation. Look, this is
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  Speaker 3: someone who has been at this during his time in
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  Speaker 3: the senatepal Relations Committee, the Senate Intel Committee. He's not
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  Speaker 3: new to the foreign policy challenges that we're facing, not
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  Speaker 3: just as a country, but as a world. I think
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  Speaker 3: this is somebody who's got charisma and ability to negotiate.
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  Speaker 3: But to me, him and others obviously at the table here,
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  Speaker 3: but then they it's gonna come down to I think
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  Speaker 3: President Trump. You know, I think there's only one world
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  Speaker 3: leader right now who can really bring this thing to
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  Speaker 3: an end. I think that that's President Trump. I think
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  Speaker 3: it's one of the reasons why he won the last
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  Speaker 3: election in twenty twenty four, because Americans want to see
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  Speaker 3: this war coming to end, as the people around the world.
• 5:00
  Speaker 1: Yeah yeah, Matt Terrell, I thank you for your time.
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  Speaker 1: Matt Terrell is Marco Rubio's former chief of staff.
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  Speaker 3: For more from Early Edition with Ryan Bridge, listen live
• 5:09
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• 5:12
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