Russia's Lavrov and US Secretary Rubio meet at UN to discuss Ukraine, relations

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met at the UN to discuss the war in Ukraine, the Middle East, and steps toward normalizing bilateral diplomatic relations.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed issues ranging from the war in Ukraine to the Middle East and ways to improve bilateral ties at a meeting on Wednesday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

A ministry statement said the two men had held a "detailed exchange" during their talks on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

It said Lavrov had pointed to "coordination" between Ukraine's leaders and their "European backers" as well as Ukrainian attacks on targets beyond its borders.

"A thorough examination was made of Kyiv's destructive actions and deliberate strikes on civilians and trans-border infrastructure sites, which is leading to the destabilization of world energy markets," it said.

Russia, the statement said, was committed to achieving the aims of its "special military operation" in Ukraine, which included a resolution of the conflict by taking into account what Moscow describes as the "root causes" of its invasion.

Russia wants to remove 'irritants' between US, Russia

The ministry said Lavrov stressed the "need to quickly improve bilateral relations" with a prospect for closer economic cooperation.

"This, of course, implies an honest dialog about eliminating 'irritants' and bringing the functioning of the diplomatic missions of the two countries back to normal," the statement said, "including the return of Russian property in the US that was effectively confiscated."