Lavrov to hold phone talks with Blinken when time allows

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that Russian Foreign Sergey Lavrov will respond to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken's call request as soon his schedule makes it possible.

"Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will devote attention to this request when time allows. Right now, his international contact schedule is packed with real businesses: the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in Tashkent and bilateral meetings," she said.

The US expects that the phone call between Blinken and Lavrov will happen in the upcoming days, US Department of State spokesman Ned Price said Thursday.