G7 meeting brawl: "Do it better yourself"

Linnea Blomberg

Published 12.22

          

          Marco Rubio got angry at Kaja Kallas during the meeting, according to sources. Photo: Brendan                Smialowski /AP/TT

During a G7 meeting on Friday, things got really heated.

EU Foreign Affairs Chief Kaja Kallas asked US Secretary of State Marco Rubio when the US was going to put more pressure on Russia.

- If you think you can do it better, go ahead, Rubio said, raising his voice, according to sources.

It was during a discussion about Ukraine that Kallas took a dig at the US and accused them of not putting enough pressure on Russia.

Kallas pointed out that Marco Rubio had said at a previous G7 meeting a year ago that if Russia made it more difficult for the US to end the war, the US would lose patience and take more action against them.

“A year has passed and Russia has not moved,” Kallas told Rubio, according to the sources. “When will your patience run out?”

Rubio became visibly irritated, according to information from three sources to Axios.

“We are doing our best to end the war. If you think you can do better, go ahead. We can step aside,” he replied in a raised tone.

Rubio said that the US is trying to talk to both sides, but that at the same time it is only supporting Ukraine, for example by supplying them with weapons.

            

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga, German Johann Wadephul, British Yvette Cooper, US Marco Rubio, French Jean-Noel Barrot, Canadian Anita Anand, Italian Antonio Tajani, Japanese Toshimitsu Motegi and EU Minister Kaja Kallas. Photo: Alain Jocard /AP/TT

Rubio denies: “Nobody is screaming”

After the heated exchange of words, several European ministers stepped in and emphasized that they still want the US to continue its attempts at diplomacy between Russia and Ukraine, one of the sources said according to Axios.

Two sources say that Rubio and Kallas had a brief private conversation after the meeting.
– It was a frank exchange of views. That's what diplomacy is for, a US State Department official told Axios.

But after the G7 meeting, Rubio denied that there had been any tension or criticism.

"These meetings are often about thanking the United States for the role we've played ... and appreciating the mediating role we've tried to play in the war between Russia and Ukraine. No one is yelling or raising their voices or saying anything negative," he told reporters on the scene after the meeting. 

 

En glad Marco Rubio före mötet... Foto: Michel Euler /AP/TT

 

...and after, before the flight home. Photo: Brendan Smialowski /AP/TT