On Friday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that he met with Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski in Washington. They discussed "fair and reciprocal market access" and the "urgent need for NATO Allies to ramp up their defense spending."

Rubio stated on social media platform X that they also talked about the Russia-Ukraine war and emphasized the need for all NATO Allies to boost their defense investments immediately. Reciprocity in market access was another key topic raised during their discussions.

When asked if he understood Washington's negotiation tactics regarding Ukraine, Sikorski deferred, saying that it was a question for the U.S. side. However, he conveyed that he believed the United States was committed to achieving lasting peace. He declined to comment on what Rubio had shared about the talks with Russia in Saudi Arabia.

President Donald Trump has been advocating for a resolution to the Ukraine war and had separate calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy last week. Trump's officials, including Rubio, met their Russian counterparts in Saudi Arabia, but these talks did not involve Ukraine. Trump also referred to Zelenskiy as a dictator on Wednesday and urged the presidents of Russia and Ukraine to collaborate on ending the war, which began with Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 after annexing Crimea in 2014.

Trump has insisted that NATO countries should increase their defense budgets. Despite nearly doubling their defense expenditures since Russia's annexation of Crimea, European nations, on average, still fall short of NATO's guideline of spending 2% of GDP on defense.

Poland leads NATO members in defense spending as a proportion of its GDP, with an estimated 4.1% in 2024. However, eight out of the 32 NATO members spend less than the 2% guideline. Trump has warned that allies who fail to meet these spending requirements might not receive U.S. protection.