What do Lavrov and Rubio discuss in Manila?

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio held talks in the Philippine capital this morning, the Russian Foreign Ministry reported.

The meeting between Lavrov and Rubio began at 3:54 a.m. GMT (06:54 a.m. Moscow time), lasting more than half an hour. It was taking place on the sidelines of ASEAN-related events in Manila at the Philippine International Convention Center.

During the conversation, the parties planned to focus particular attention on the settlement of the conflict in Ukraine. Lavrov noted on the previous day that Moscow proceeded from the assumption that Washington had not yet abandoned the proposals put forward in Alaska.

According to a diplomatic source, the U.S. side initiated the meeting between Russian Foreign Minister and US Secretary of State.

Representing the Russian side in the negotiations were Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko, Director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Foreign Policy Planning Department Alexey Drobinin, and Russia’s Permanent Presidential Representative to ASEAN Yevgeny Zagainov.

Representing the US side were Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker and Special Presidential Envoy Sergio Gor.

The Russian FM reaffirmed Moscow’s commitment to the agreements reached with Washington at last year's bilateral summit in Alaska during a meeting with Rubio in Manila.

"Lavrov reiterated Russia’s readiness to resolve the conflict through political and diplomatic means and reaffirmed Moscow’s commitment to the proposals put forward by the U.S. at a meeting between President Vladimir Putin of Russia and President Donald Trump in Anchorage, Alaska, which were accepted by the Russian leader," the statement reads.

In addition, the top Russian diplomat emphasized that further weapons supplies to Kiev were unacceptable.

"When discussing Ukraine-related issues, Lavrov briefed his American counterpart on the real situation along the line of contact and stressed that further flooding the Kiev regime with weapons was unacceptable, along with the overall destructive policy pursued by European countries, which continue seeking to inflict a ‘strategic defeat’ on Russia," the Foreign Ministry pointed out.

The Russian foreign minister and the U.S. secretary of state also discussed regional and international issues, including the situation in the Persian Gulf.

"Attention was also paid to ways to normalize the operation of the Russian and U.S. diplomatic missions," the statement added.

The parties also agreed to maintain contact between the two foreign policy agencies, particularly as part of the two countries’ participation in the activities of international organizations.