US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met on Wednesday in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly. The meeting took place without introductory statements to the media and continued behind closed doors.
Rubio and Lavrov last met on July 22, on the sidelines of ASEAN-related meetings in Manila. The talks this time were expected to focus on US-Russia relations and diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine. The meeting comes a day after talks between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in New York.
After meeting with Trump, Zelenskyy said that Ukraine is ready for a ceasefire that would include energy infrastructure, provided that Russia also stops attacks on the Ukrainian energy system. He said that the proposal for a reciprocal ceasefire would be conveyed to Moscow by US representatives.
The Rubio-Lavrov meeting takes place at a time when Washington is continuing diplomatic efforts regarding the war in Ukraine, while Moscow has stated that it remains open to negotiations, but that it currently does not see the necessary conditions for a transition to a new peace process.
