Lavrov-Rubio meeting: Ukraine war, dead Anchorage plan, renewed bilateral ties (VIDEO)

The top Russian and US diplomats met in person for the first time since September 2025 Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met on Thursday on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit in Manila, Philippines.The two diplomats did not make any statements or take questions from reporters before or after the meeting, which lasted around 35 minutes due to a tight schedule. It marked their first in-person talks since September 2025.Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova stated after the meeting that the talks focused on bilateral relations and major international issues, including the Ukraine conflict and the situation in the Persian Gulf.While discussing the Ukraine crisis, she said Lavrov briefed Rubio on the “real state of affairs” along the front line, warned against further arms deliveries to Kiev, and accused European countries of pursuing a destabilizing policy aimed at inflicting a “strategic defeat” on Russia.Lavrov also reaffirmed Moscow’s readiness for a diplomatic settlement and its commitment to the US proposals accepted by President Vladimir Putin at the summit in Anchorage, Alaska last year, she said.Zakharova stated that the two dipl...