RUBIO, LAVROV SET FOR NEW YORK MEETING AMID UKRAINE PEACE EFFORTS

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in New York on Wednesday as both officials attend the 81st United Nations General Assembly. The meeting, confirmed by the US State Department, comes as Washington continues diplomatic efforts concerning Russia’s war in Ukraine and seeks ways to bring the conflict towards negotiations.

The talks are taking place a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met US President Donald Trump at the UN headquarters in New York. Zelensky said the two leaders discussed efforts to end the war, including a possible agreement to stop attacks on energy infrastructure. He said Ukraine was prepared to halt strikes against Russian energy facilities if Moscow agreed to reciprocal measures.

The proposed Rubio-Lavrov meeting also comes amid continued fighting between Russia and Ukraine, with both sides carrying out long-range attacks. Ukrainian officials reported Russian strikes that killed eight people in the country’s industrial heartland and other frontline areas, while Ukraine’s military said it had attacked oil refineries in Ufa and the Samara region of Russia. Both Moscow and Kyiv have denied deliberately targeting civilians.

Washington’s efforts to broker an end to the conflict have faced difficulties in recent months. Lavrov said last week that Russia would not stop fighting while potential negotiations were taking place, while the Kremlin said ahead of Wednesday’s meeting that there were still no conditions for moving towards a peace negotiation process, although Moscow remained open to talks. Zelensky, meanwhile, has said he remains willing to engage in direct discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Lavrov arrived in New York ahead of the meeting and is scheduled to address the UN General Assembly on Saturday. Rubio and Lavrov have held several meetings since the Trump administration began high-level diplomatic contacts with Moscow, including discussions on the Ukraine war and US-Russia relations. Their latest encounter is expected to provide another opportunity for Washington and Moscow to discuss the conflict and broader relations between the two countries.