US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has dismissed media reports claiming President Donald Trump authorized military strikes against Venezuelan targets.

"Your 'sources' who claim to 'know about the situation' tricked you into writing a fake article," Rubio wrote on X.

The denial came hours after the Miami Herald reported Friday that the Trump administration had decided to attack military facilities in Venezuela. The newspaper stated the strikes could occur at any moment and would target military sites allegedly used for illegal drug trafficking operations.

Trump also denied approving any strikes on Venezuelan military facilities.

The Miami Herald's report suggested the planned operations would focus on destroying infrastructure connected to narcotics smuggling routes.

Germany has expressed concerns that Trump's anti-drug enforcement measures could push cartels to redirect their operations toward Europe, Yevropeyska Pravda previously reported.

Citing its sources, Reuters reports that US President Donald Trump’s administration has prepared a new package of sanctions that could target Russia’s banking and oil sectors if Moscow continues its war against Ukraine. Washington has also urged European partners to take the lead in tightening economic pressure, even as it weighs options to use frozen Russian assets to support Kyiv.

Trump weighs next move on Russia sanctions

According to Reuters, US officials have developed additional sanctions that could strike key areas of Russia’s economy, including the banking sector and the infrastructure used to export oil. The measures are ready to deploy if Russia's President Vladimir Putin refuses to advance peace efforts in Ukraine. Officials told Reuters that the United States has also discussed with European allies the use of frozen Russian assets to buy American weapons for Ukraine, while internal talks in Washington have begun on how to leverage assets held domestically.

Europe urged to take the next step

Reuters cites a senior US official saying he wants European nations to make “the next big Russia move,” which could include fresh tariffs or financial restrictions. Another source familiar with internal discussions told Reuters that Trump plans to wait several weeks to gauge Moscow’s reaction before deciding on further measures.

The White House has positioned Trump as a global peacemaker, but he has acknowledged that ending Russia’s invasion has proven far more difficult than expected. His August meeting with Putin in Alaska made no progress, and on 25 October, Trump told reporters in Doha that he would not meet the Russian leader again unless a peace deal seemed achievable.

“I’m not going to be wasting my time,” he said.

Ukraine’s proposals and Senate push

Ukrainian officials recently presented new sanction ideas to Washington, Reuters reports, including a plan to cut all Russian banks off from the US dollar system. It remains unclear whether those proposals will be adopted. Meanwhile, some senators are pushing to advance a long-stalled bipartisan sanctions bill, and Reuters says Trump is open to endorsing it—though not this month.

USAID officially stopped implementing foreign assistance as of July 1, as the Trump administration seeks to realign international aid with its policies, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced.

"Foreign assistance programs that align with administration policies — and which advance American interests — will be administered by the State Department," Rubio said in a statement on Substack.

The Trump administration has set its sights on the U.S.'s chief foreign aid agency, accusing it — despite little evidence — of fraud and of promoting a "liberal" or "leftist" agenda. Roughly 83% of USAID's programs, or around 5,200 contracts, were terminated in March, and thousands of workers were laid off.

Founded in 1961, USAID has played a crucial role in humanitarian relief worldwide and has overseen thousands of programs supporting democracy-building, human rights, and economic development.

"USAID had decades and a near-infinite taxpayer budget to advance American influence, promote economic development worldwide, and allow billions to stand on their own two feet," Rubio said.

"Beyond creating a globe-spanning NGO industrial complex at taxpayer expense, USAID has little to show since the end of the Cold War."

Contradicting Rubio's comments, experts and former U.S. officials have criticized the decision and pointed to potentially devastating humanitarian consequences. Research by The Lancet estimated that USAID funding cuts could result in 14 million deaths by 2030, including 4.5 million children younger than 5.

"We will not apologize for recognizing America's longstanding commitment to life-saving humanitarian aid and promotion of economic development abroad must be in furtherance of an America First foreign policy," Rubio said.

The chief U.S. diplomat presented the step as part of President Donald Trump's broader policies aimed at requiring international allies and partners to pay a greater share for projects around the world.

"Americans should not pay taxes to fund failed governments in faraway lands. Moving forward, our assistance will be targeted and time limited. We will favor those nations that have demonstrated both the ability and willingness to help themselves," Rubio said.

Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, USAID has provided $2.6 billion in humanitarian aid to Ukraine, as well as $5 billion in development assistance and more than $30 billion in direct budget support to Kyiv.

As US aid to Ukraine dries up, new platform connects Americans investors with Ukrainian startups

Ukraine’s startup ecosystem has tripled in five years, even during Russia’s full-scale invasion, to become the second most valuable in Central and Eastern Europe at $28 billion.

The Kyiv IndependentDominic Culverwell

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio surprised NATO allies this week with conflicting messages on Russia sanctions, delivering a tougher stance in private than in his public remarks, Politico reported on June 25.

Rubio met with NATO foreign ministers on June 25 during a private dinner at the alliance's annual summit. According to sources who spoke with Politico, Rubio acknowledged that Russia was the main obstacle preventing peace talks to end the war in Ukraine.

He reportedly said the U.S. Senate would likely consider new sanctions legislation after completing work on President Donald Trump's spending bill.

However, just hours later, Rubio softened his position on Russia during an exclusive interview with Politico, calling for a more cautious approach.

"If we did what everybody here wants us to do, and that is come in and crush them with more sanctions, we probably lose our ability to talk to them about the ceasefire and then who's talking to them?" Rubio said.

Putin insists the Russian economy is fine, but Kremlin officials say otherwise

In a rare public sign that all is not well in Russia, two high-ranking Moscow officials last week issued separate warnings about the state of the country’s economy. Russian Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina and Economy Minister Maxim Reshetnikov both highlighted that amid the Kremlin’s full-scale war against Ukraine, the tools Moscow once relied on to maintain wartime growth are nearly exhausted. Almost immediately, Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 20 dismissed the concerns, clai

The Kyiv IndependentTim Zadorozhnyy

He also added that Trump would know the "time and place" to change course.

When asked about the apparent shift in tone, a senior U.S. official insisted Rubio's messaging has remained consistent in conversations with allies.

"The secretary has been very consistent in meeting and calls with his counterparts on three key point," the official said.

"One is that the president believes strongly that the only way this war ends is through negotiations; second, as soon as the U.S. imposes new sanctions on Russia the opportunity for the U.S. to be involved in those negotiations closes; and third, that the Senate, in America anyway, is an independent body that at some point is going to move on those sanctions,."

At the NATO dinner, Rubio reportedly faced criticism from Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski, who claimed that Russian President Vladimir Putin was disrespecting Trump by violating the ceasefire.

It has been more than 100 days since Ukraine agreed to a U.S.-backed complete ceasefire, while Russia continues to reject it.

Sikorski also reportedly denounced Moscow's repeated attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, which have intensified in recent weeks, saying such strikes "should not come for free" — implying that the U.S. and Europe should do more to support Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Rubio has delivered different messages in public and behind closed doors. Despite the shifting rhetoric, Baltic and Nordic countries reportedly view him as a pragmatic ally within the Trump administration — one who has a realistic understanding of the threats posed by Russia and China, according to a second European official cited by POLITICO.

Ukraine war latest: US signals more Patriot missiles for Kyiv after Zelensky-Trump talks at NATO summit

Key developments on June 25: * Zelensky, Trump hold talks on NATO summit sidelines * ‘Something unknown’ hits key Russian drone facility in Taganrog, Ukrainian official says * Russia has launched over 28,000 Shahed drones at Ukraine since 2022, with nearly 10% fired in June alone, Zelensky says * Donetsk Oblast city “on

The Kyiv IndependentThe Kyiv Independent news desk

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in an interview with Politico on June 25 that U.S. President Donald Trump will resist European pressure to escalate sanctions on Russia, arguing that doing so could close the door to potential peace negotiations with Moscow.

Speaking with Politico on the sidelines of the NATO summit in The Hague, Rubio said Trump wants to keep open a diplomatic channel with Russian President Vladimir Putin, despite growing frustration from European leaders and President Volodymyr Zelensky over Russia's refusal to agree to a ceasefire.

"If we did what everybody here wants us to do, and that is come in and crush them with more sanctions, we probably lose our ability to talk to them about the ceasefire and then who's talking to them?" Rubio said.

Rubio acknowledged that Russia appears committed to pursuing its objectives by force.

"Our sense of it is that the Russians are going to try to achieve on the battlefield what they've demanded at the negotiating table, which is certain territories, administrative lines, and the like," he said. "We think it’s going to be a lot harder for them to achieve that than they think it's going to be."

Rubio added that Trump "will know the right time and place" for additional sanctions, but emphasized that imposing them too soon could signal that the U.S. has given up on a negotiated resolution.

Previously, Trump said he had refrained from imposing new sanctions on Russia because he believed a peace deal with Moscow might be within reach, warning he did not want to jeopardize negotiations by acting prematurely.

Speaking after two rounds of peace talks in Istanbul between Moscow and Kyiv that led to no ceasefire, Trump on June 5 declined to say when additional sanctions on Russia might be imposed, only noting there is a deadline "in (his) brain."

"If he (Trump) does it, you're almost admitting that this is not going to be negotiated anytime soon," he said. "We're going to continue to engage. In the sense that if there's an opportunity for us to make a difference and get them to the table, we're going to take it."

Zelensky and several European leaders are expected to ask Trump during meetings at the summit to increase economic pressure on Moscow.  

It has been more than 100 days, since Ukraine agreed to a U.S.-backed complete ceasefire, while Russia continues to reject it. Moscow continues pushing maximalist demands while intensifying attacks across Ukrainian cities.

Investigation: How Russia prepares its strategic missile plant for ‘eternal war’

Key findings: * Despite international sanctions, Russia’s strategic missile plant was able to import complex machinery to dramatically increase missile production. * The Kyiv Independent has identified the equipment supplied to the plant, as well as the supply chains, mostly from China. * We located the plant’s new premises, built to house the

The Kyiv IndependentAlisa Yurchenko