The official added that Blinken “disabused” Lavrov of any idea that the United States’ support of Ukraine would waver, and that the secretary of State didn’t get the impression from the Russian foreign minister that Moscow’s behavior would change in any way.
Blinken and Lavrov have only been in contact one other time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, speaking by phone over the summer to discuss a U.S. proposal for Russia to release both Whelan and formerly detained WNBA star Brittney Griner. The U.S. in December released Viktor Bout, an imprisoned Russian arms dealer, in exchange for Griner’s release, but Whelan remains imprisoned by the Kremlin, which has accused him of spying.
The last time the two counterparts met in person was in January 2022, just before Russia’s invasion, during a meeting in Geneva where Blinken warned Lavrov of the consequences Moscow would face should it go ahead with launching its unprovoked offensive. Since Russia’s invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, Blinken and Lavrov have attended several international conferences together but had avoided any face-to-face interactions until Thursday.
