Rubio discussed with Lavrov the need to end the war against Ukraine
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met in Manila with Sergey Lavrov, the foreign minister of Russia, the aggressor state. According to Rubio, they discussed relations between the U.S. and Russia, as well as the need to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.
The meeting took place on the sidelines of the annual meeting of foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in the Philippines. Rubio reported on the talks on social media platform X, without providing further details of the conversation.
The day before, the U.S. Secretary of State told reporters in Manila that he planned to raise the issue of Russia’s war against Ukraine with Lavrov. According to him, the U.S. remains open to participating in bringing the war to an end, “if such an opportunity arises.”
Rubio also acknowledged that such efforts “have slowed somewhat over the past few months.” At the same time, he said that during the meeting they would explore whether it is possible to resume negotiations.
According to the Associated Press, prior to the meeting, Rubio and Lavrov did not answer reporters’ questions about Russia’s possible assistance to Iran—specifically regarding the transfer of data on U.S. facilities in the region to Tehran—or about ending the war in Ukraine. About half an hour later, Lavrov left the meeting.
The Russian Foreign Ministry stated that Lavrov briefed Rubio on the “real” state of affairs in Russia’s war against Ukraine and emphasized the “unacceptability of further arms supplies” to Ukraine.
