U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the side lines of the ASEAN foreign ministers' summit in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday, according to announcements from both the U.S. State Department and Russia’s foreign ministry.
This will mark the second face-to-face meeting between the two diplomats, taking place amid growing frustration from U.S. President Donald Trump over the prolonged war in Ukraine.
Their initial meeting occurred in February in Saudi Arabia, as part of Washington’s renewed efforts to restore dialogue with Moscow and help broker an end to the conflict.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova confirmed the planned talks, telling TASS news agency that the meeting is being arranged.
Trump, who returned to office this year vowing to quickly end the Ukraine war that began in 2022, initially adopted a softer stance toward Moscow, differing from former President Joe Biden’s firm backing of Kyiv.
However, following his recent decision to approve defensive weapons shipments to Ukraine, Trump issued rare public criticism of President Vladimir Putin, dismissing the Russian leader's peace-related comments as "meaningless."
He also indicated he might support legislation imposing harsh sanctions on Russia, including 500% tariffs on countries purchasing Russian oil, gas, uranium, and other key exports.
Responding to Trump's remarks, the Kremlin said on Wednesday it remained “calm” and would continue efforts to repair what it called a “broken” relationship with the U.S.
Meanwhile, in Rome, Trump’s Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a summit of Ukraine’s international supporters, with Kyiv describing the meeting as “substantive.”
The developments come as Ukraine faces intensified aerial assaults from Russia. On Wednesday, Moscow launched a record 728 drones in a single wave—part of a series of recent escalations combining drones and ballistic missiles that are putting increasing pressure on Ukraine’s air defences.
Rubio’s trip to Kuala Lumpur marks his first visit to Asia since assuming office and includes meetings with leaders of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and senior Malaysian officials.
The visit is aimed at reinvigorating U.S. engagement in the Indo-Pacific, as the Trump administration seeks to expand its strategic focus beyond the ongoing conflicts in Europe and the Middle East. Rubio, who also serves as national security adviser, is leading this push while balancing his dual roles.
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U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday imposed Ukraine-related sanctions on Russia for the first time in his second term, targeting major oil producers Lukoil and Rosneft as his frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the conflict deepens.
Russian drones struck the Ukrainian capital for a second consecutive night, wounding four people, officials said early on Thursday.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he expected to reach a series of agreements with Chinese President Xi Jinping when they meet in South Korea next week, ranging from the resumption of Chinese soybean imports to potential limits on nuclear weapons.
Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy has been the target of death threats from an inmate at Paris’s La Santé prison, where he began serving his sentence this week, prompting an official investigation, the Paris prosecutor’s office said on Wednesday.
At least 69 people have died and almost 150 injured following a powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake off the coast of Cebu City in the central Visayas region of the Philippines, officials said, making it one of the country’s deadliest disasters this year.
A tsunami threat was issued in Chile after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck the Drake Passage on Friday. The epicenter was located 135 miles south of Puerto Williams on the north coast of Navarino Island.
The war in Ukraine has reached a strategic impasse, and it seems that the conflict will not be solved by military means. This creates a path toward one of two alternatives: either a “frozen” phase that can last indefinitely or a quest for a durable political regulation.
A shooting in Nice, southeastern France, left two people dead and five injured on Friday, authorities said.
Snapchat will start charging users who store more than 5GB of photos and videos in its Memories feature, prompting backlash from long-time users.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he had called off a planned summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, citing a lack of diplomatic progress and saying that “the timing wasn’t right.”
U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday imposed Ukraine-related sanctions on Russia for the first time in his second term, targeting major oil producers Lukoil and Rosneft as his frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the conflict deepens.
Russian drones struck the Ukrainian capital for a second consecutive night, wounding four people, officials said early on Thursday.
Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy has been the target of death threats from an inmate at Paris’s La Santé prison, where he began serving his sentence this week, prompting an official investigation, the Paris prosecutor’s office said on Wednesday.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he expected to reach a series of agreements with Chinese President Xi Jinping when they meet in South Korea next week, ranging from the resumption of Chinese soybean imports to potential limits on nuclear weapons.
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