Rubio plans to skip NATO meeting at key moment for Ukraine

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio plans to skip a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels next week, two U.S. officials said, in a highly unusual

absence of the top U.S. diplomat from a key transatlantic gathering.



Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau will represent Washington instead, said one of the officials, who requested anonymity to discuss matters that have not yet been made public.



It was unclear why exactly Rubio planned to skip the December 3 meeting, and his plans could change at the last second. But his likely no-show comes at a time when U.S. and Ukrainian officials have been scrambling to narrow gaps over President Donald Trump's controversial plan to end Russia's invasion of Ukraine, with some European diplomats complaining they are being cut out of the process.