The United States is prepared to engage in serious diplomacy with Russia, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, speaking with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov over the phone.
"The Secretary made clear to Foreign Minister Lavrov, as he has before, that we are prepared to engage in serious diplomacy with the Russian Federation on a reciprocal basis," he said.
"Now, that will require intensive, substantive, serious, sustained diplomacy if we are to get there. We are prepared for that," the diplomat noted.
Price stressed that they remain open and amenable to another leader-level engagement between U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin, adding that it will depend on where they are after this next step.
