Rubio tells Lavrov that the US is ready to mediate between Russia and Ukraine

US Secretary of State Marco Rubiotold Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrovon Thursday that his country is ready to mediate the open war between Russia and Ukraine since 2022, but that the Kremlin has reduced optimism about an early resolution of the conflict.

"In this situation, I wouldn't be too optimistic. There are contacts. That's always positive, but there's no reason to talk about a new dynamic or a new momentum, " President Dmitri Peskov's spokesmansaid at a press conference following the meeting between Rubio and Lavrov.

However, the Russian spokesman said he hoped that Moscow would "free American negotiators "and" be able to travel to Moscow to continue the dialogue, "referring to the involvement of Steve Witkoff and Jared Kuchner in the situation in Iran.

Meeting in Manila

Rubio has described his conversation with his counterpart in Manila, where they both attended the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Foreign Relations meeting, as "good " and "honest," while reiterating Washington's willingness to play a "constructive" role in ending the war.

For his part, the Russian Foreign Minister said that he had informed Rubio of the "real situation" and stressed that " it is unacceptable to continue arming the regime in Kiev ".

Russia has also accused European countries of pursuing "destabilizing" policies aimed at "strategic failure" of Moscow.

The peace negotiationsbetween Moscow and Kiev, mediated by Washington, have been stalled since February, when the US launched an offensive against Iran.

Since then, Ukrainians have intensified their attacks on Russia, and Moscow has intensified its bombing of Kiev and the port of Odessa in the Black Sea.