US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, meets Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the Asean Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Reuters
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, meets Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the Asean Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Reuters
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, meets Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the Asean Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Reuters
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, meets Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the Asean Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Reuters

Rubio indicates 'new concept' in ending Russia-Ukraine war


Thomas Watkins
  • English
  • Arabic

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday that the US and Russia have exchanged ideas during discussions about ending the war in Ukraine.

Mr Rubio met Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Malaysia, as Moscow escalates its war against Ukraine with some of the most intense attacks since it began in 2022.

The new concept could "open the door to a path” to peace, Mr Rubio told reporters in Malaysia.

"We need to see a roadmap moving forward about how this conflict can conclude," he added.

US President Donald Trump, who promised while campaigning to quickly end the war, has grown increasingly frustrated with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“He’s been frustrated by the lack of progress on a war that he thinks should have never happened – very costly, very bloody,” Mr Rubio said. “We’re going to continue to do everything we can and engage in every productive way possible to bring an end to this war.”

Russian drones and missiles pounded Kyiv on Thursday, as escalating attacks have strained Ukrainian air defences, forcing thousands into bomb shelters.

Mr Trump for the first time since returning to office will send weapons to Kyiv under a presidential power frequently used by his predecessor, sources told Reuters on Thursday, in a move suggesting new interest by the President in defending Ukraine.

More than three years after Russia's invasion, Mr Trump's team will identify arms from US stockpiles to send to Ukraine under the Presidential Drawdown Authority, the sources said, with one saying they could be worth about $300 million.

Mr Trump on Tuesday said the US would send more weapons to Ukraine.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company profile

Company: Eighty6 

Date started: October 2021 

Founders: Abdul Kader Saadi and Anwar Nusseibeh 

Based: Dubai, UAE 

Sector: Hospitality 

Size: 25 employees 

Funding stage: Pre-series A 

Investment: $1 million 

Investors: Seed funding, angel investors  

About Housecall

Date started: July 2020

Founders: Omar and Humaid Alzaabi

Based: Abu Dhabi

Sector: HealthTech

# of staff: 10

Funding to date: Self-funded

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Lamsa

Founder: Badr Ward

Launched: 2014

Employees: 60

Based: Abu Dhabi

Sector: EdTech

Funding to date: $15 million

UAE central contracts

Full time contracts

Rohan Mustafa, Ahmed Raza, Mohammed Usman, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Sultan Ahmed, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Waheed Ahmed, Zawar Farid

Part time contracts

Aryan Lakra, Ansh Tandon, Karthik Meiyappan, Rahul Bhatia, Alishan Sharafu, CP Rizwaan, Basil Hameed, Matiullah, Fahad Nawaz, Sanchit Sharma

The specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo

Power: 240hp at 5,500rpm

Torque: 390Nm at 3,000rpm

Transmission: eight-speed auto

Price: from Dh122,745

On sale: now

Company%20profile
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Who are the Sacklers?

The Sackler family is a transatlantic dynasty that owns Purdue Pharma, which manufactures and markets OxyContin, one of the drugs at the centre of America's opioids crisis. The family is well known for their generous philanthropy towards the world's top cultural institutions, including Guggenheim Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, Tate in Britain, Yale University and the Serpentine Gallery, to name a few. Two branches of the family control Purdue Pharma.

Isaac Sackler and Sophie Greenberg were Jewish immigrants who arrived in New York before the First World War. They had three sons. The first, Arthur, died before OxyContin was invented. The second, Mortimer, who died aged 93 in 2010, was a former chief executive of Purdue Pharma. The third, Raymond, died aged 97 in 2017 and was also a former chief executive of Purdue Pharma. 

It was Arthur, a psychiatrist and pharmaceutical marketeer, who started the family business dynasty. He and his brothers bought a small company called Purdue Frederick; among their first products were laxatives and prescription earwax remover.

Arthur's branch of the family has not been involved in Purdue for many years and his daughter, Elizabeth, has spoken out against it, saying the company's role in America's drugs crisis is "morally abhorrent".

The lawsuits that were brought by the attorneys general of New York and Massachussetts named eight Sacklers. This includes Kathe, Mortimer, Richard, Jonathan and Ilene Sackler Lefcourt, who are all the children of either Mortimer or Raymond. Then there's Theresa Sackler, who is Mortimer senior's widow; Beverly, Raymond's widow; and David Sackler, Raymond's grandson.

Members of the Sackler family are rarely seen in public.

The bio

Favourite vegetable: Broccoli

Favourite food: Seafood

Favourite thing to cook: Duck l'orange

Favourite book: Give and Take by Adam Grant, one of his professors at University of Pennsylvania

Favourite place to travel: Home in Kuwait.

Favourite place in the UAE: Al Qudra lakes

The Orwell Prize for Political Writing

Twelve books were longlisted for The Orwell Prize for Political Writing. The non-fiction works cover various themes from education, gender bias, and the environment to surveillance and political power. Some of the books that made it to the non-fiction longlist include: 

  • Appeasing Hitler: Chamberlain, Churchill and the Road to War by Tim Bouverie
  • Some Kids I Taught and What They Taught Me by Kate Clanchy
  • Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez
  • Follow Me, Akhi: The Online World of British Muslims by Hussein Kesvani
  • Guest House for Young Widows: Among the Women of ISIS by Azadeh Moaveni
Updated: July 10, 2025, 8:29 PM