Lavrov and Rubio spoke on the phone about preparations for the Putin-Trump summit in Budapest
Marco Rubio (right) talking with Sergei Lavrov at the summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska. Photo credit: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds / AFP / Profimedia
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had a telephone conversation on Monday about preparations for the summit that will bring together Russian and US Presidents Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump in Budapest.
“There was a constructive discussion about the possible concrete steps to implement the agreements reached during the telephone conversation of October 16” between Putin and Trump, when it was agreed to organize the summit in Budapest, according to a press release from the Russian Foreign Ministry, according to Agerpres.
Lavrov and Rubio are expected to meet soon to finalize the agenda and date for the summit, which should take place in about two weeks, according to Trump.
The Kremlin still has “many questions” about the Putin-Trump summit in Budapest, but is “aware” of one thing / When will the meeting take place
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Monday that it was not yet known where the meeting between the Russian foreign minister and the US secretary of state, who last met in mid-August in Alaska, would take place.
“The most important thing now is to convey to the Americans that Anchorage (Alaska's capital) has established the framework in which we must work. We have no other alternative: we must base all our efforts on what has been established and formulated by the presidents,” he said.
Both Ukraine and the European Union believe that the Alaska summit allowed Putin to buy time and fear that the same scenario will be repeated in Budapest.
