Rubio says he spoke to Lavrov about potential Trump-Putin meeting at Apec

US secretary of state Marco Rubio said Saturday that he spoke to Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on the sidelines of G20 talks and discussed a possible interaction between both countries’ leaders next month.

“We spoke just briefly about the opportunity for our leaders to potentially interact at Apec next month,” Rubio said, referring to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation group’s summit in the Chinese city of Shenzhen in mid-November.

But Rubio stressed at a press conference that he did not have a formal meeting with Lavrov during the two-day gathering of G20 foreign ministers in Atlanta, Georgia.

The talks among the Group of 20 major economies — which includes the US, Russia, China, India, France and Germany — wrap up on Saturday.

Rubio’s remarks came a day after the Russian foreign minister told reporters that both men had a “decent talk”.

Lavrov’s presence in Atlanta had sparked tensions among European countries. Russia has been shunned by most of the West after its 2022 invasion of neighboring Ukraine.

On Friday, plans for a traditional family photo of G20 ministers were cancelled as some European officials objected to appearing alongside Lavrov.

But the Russian minister’s appearance also underscored warmer US-Russia ties.

“It is always important that the United States and Russia have communications at some level because of the danger of escalation in the future,” Rubio told reporters on Saturday.

He pointed to both the Russia-Ukraine conflict and Moscow’s nuclear weapons.

On the Ukraine war, Rubio said: “If we can play a role in mediating an end to that conflict, the United States is prepared to play that role.”

“And to play that role, we have to have the ability to communicate with both sides,” he said.