US, Russia discuss removal of 'barriers' set by previous US administration
(VOVWORLD) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed the situation in Ukraine on Saturday, as well as the removal of unilateral barriers set by the previous US administration, Moscow said.
 US Secretary of State Marco Rubio during a meeting with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty at the State Department in Washington, US, February 10, 2025. (REUTERS) |
US and Russian officials are to start talks in the coming days on ending the conflict between Russia and Ukraine after US President Donald Trump called Russian President Vladimir Putin and declaring an immediate start to the talks.
Lavrov and Rubio, in a call initiated by the US, agreed to maintain contacts to resolve problems in bilateral relations, "in the interest of removing the unilateral barriers to mutually beneficial trade, economic and investment cooperation inherited from the previous administration," Russia's foreign ministry said in a statement.
It was not immediately clear what barriers were discussed.
 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) |
The US State Department said Rubio reaffirmed in the call Trump's commitment to finding an end to the conflict in Ukraine. In addition, they discussed the opportunity to potentially work together on a number of other bilateral issues, it said in a statement, without providing further detail.
Russia said Lavrov and Rubio expressed their mutual willingness to interact on pressing international issues, including the settlement around Ukraine, the situation around Palestine and in the Middle East in general.
They agreed to work on restoring "mutually respectful interstate dialogue" in line with the tone set by the presidents, the ministry said. The Russian foreign ministry said Lavrov and Rubio also discussed how to quickly improve the conditions for the functioning of Russian diplomatic missions in the US.