Lavrov, Rubio agree on contacts to prepare for Putin-Trump meeting

Two sides expressed their mutual willingness to interact on pressing international issues

By Reuters

February 16, 2025

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks during a press conference following a meeting with his Sudanese counterpart Ali Yousuf Al-Sharif in Moscow, Russia, February 12, 2025. — Reuters

MOSCOW: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a phone call on Saturday andagreed on regular contacts to prepare for a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said.

The phone call was held at the initiative of the U.S. side, it added.

“The two sides expressed their mutual willingness to interact on pressing international issues, including the settlement around Ukraine, the situation around Palestine and in general in the Middle East and other regional directions,” the ministry said in a statement. “Sergei Lavrov and Marco Rubio reaffirmed their readiness to work together to restore mutually respectful interstate dialogue in line with the tone set by the presidents.”

Trump and Putin spoke for over an hour on Wednesday, the first known direct contact between U.S. and Russian presidents since Putin had a call with Joe Biden shortly before ordering tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022.